Book 1-Ninjago:Legend Reborn
by CrystalliaWriting
Summary: Long ago, there was a Spirit Queen and a Demon King, bonded by life's balance. To keep peace, neither could be destroyed. Suddenly, the demon was freed, rampaging in revenge for being locked up. To seal him away once more and prevent further destruction, the spirit had to sacrifice her army and herself. Now good and evil lie in balance once again, awaiting Chaos.
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer: I don't own Ninjago sadly, only my story idea and ocs.**

 **Hello fellow Ninjago fans! Wow this is getting thrilling as I type this but anyways, this is an idea I had for quite a while and now I'm ready to share it and my first fanfic with you guys! I was inspired with the fact that Ninjago has elements from Japan but with a modern twist, so I wanted to add onto that by using Japanese mythology. With new episodes coming soon I felt like I really had to get my butt off the couch and on to my desk chair and get to work. When the episodes come I will incorporate it into my story, but I've blabbing on for too long! Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you Ninjago: Legend Reborn!**

* * *

 **Prologue**

Darkness. That would be the first thing you would see if you could walk into the crumbling castle's throne room. Darkness looming over six warriors, struggling to catch what little breath they had left after fighting an unfair battle. Demonic yellow eyes and a white, wicked smile pierced the dark body's shadow, it illuminated the six pathetic humans that had wasted their meaningless lives and for what? To fight for a world that didn't know of their existence, for freedom they had lost during their first attempt at a rebellion of justice? Pathetic.

The youngest of the warriors forced himself up, using his sword to lean on. All the while the poor boy was shaking fiercely from exhaustion, this only brought pleasure to the giant demon as he finally spoke, "Boy" he spoke with a deep echoing voice, "why do you try to stand and look me in the eye?"

"You have tortured many beings, you broke the balance and destiny! Why shouldn't I fight against another corrupted being w-who limited us and enslaved all who were different?!"

" **ENOUGH!"** And with that the demon merely flicked the boy with his dark red claws, it was enough to send him flying until he hit head first into a column. "I, along with my fallen comrades, enslaved you because **you** put us in a cage! Because **you** limited all that power that we had inside **us!** Inside **me!** "

With every scream the giant demon poked the boy with his claw, harder and harder into the unstable column. "Your precious spirit savior doomed you from the start when **she** stepped out of line! You, along with all the pathetic freaks in this castle that she 'rescued and gave sanctuary to,'could have just accepted your what little things your life had to offer and you wouldn't be on the edge of death!"

The demon was now clutching the boy that now glowed with a green tainted aura, his life force, in his clawed hand. Holding him close enough to see his pointed teeth he whispered, "She didn't tell you did she? I didn't break free of my prison by brute force or dark magic this time. Seraphina released me of her own free will."

The young boy was shaking harder than before, tears welled up in his eyes and dripped down his now horrified face. " N-no. She w-wouldn't.. Seraphina l-loves us and sacrificed so much for us. No matter what happened to her sh-she…i-it's not true. No! It's not true! No, no, no, **NO!** "

" **SILENCE!"** the demon bellowed, crushing the boy even harder. " She **did** release me! Even though she knew of the consequences of my possible return, your Seraphina just went ahead and foolishly-"

"Oliver!" both the demon and Oliver turned their heads toward the source of the sound.

"Se-Seraphina?" Oliver choked out, and there she was. Seraphina, the ruler of the collapsing castle stood panting and tired, wearing a mess of what was her dress. It was torn and tainted from the swings and hits of weapons and dark magic, while her long, dark curls were loosened and had sections of hair covering her face. She was almost unrecognizable, if it had not been for her pink curl and her crown housing a small pink gem, she would have looked like she was with the enemy's army.

"Onryō," she said taking a step closer, "put him down. Now."

"You must be joking!" Onryō cackled out, "You brought me back and now you think you can just send me away?! You are no savior! You are a coward! You run and hide from the inevitable! When the times comes to fight you don't finish it! You just seal me away and this time **you** brought me out because the peace and quiet bored you, didn't it?! Answer me, savior!"

With the final demand hanging in the air, she simply replied, "Look at your hand, Onryō."

Looking at his free the demon dropped Oliver in shock. It was disintegrating! Faster and faster, the disintegration spread like a plague up his arm and continued to the rest of his body. The giant demon shrieked in pain and agony as his body soon became a black swirling tornado. It spun faster and faster as a black hole from the ground opened up, sucking the particles of Onryō into its dark depths until his screams fell into a loud silence.

It was over, he was sealed away once more. Seraphina turned and ran toward Oliver, holding the boy tightly in her arms. "Oliver, are you alright?"

"Seraphina? D-did you d-destroy….?"

She simply shook her head. " Don't worry about him anymore child. We won't be here when he comes back."

A soft chime rang through Oliver's ears, followed by six more. Despite the stinging pain, he looked down and saw the gem from his choker, along with a pink one, had fallen off of his neck. How? Only he could take it off if he wanted too but he didn't have the strength to even reach and…

"Oliver, look at me."

At that moment he instantly regretted it. She was dissolving, just like Onryō! " Seraphina! You're..but why aren't you in pain and screaming? What did you do?"

"Look at yourself and the others." She said with tears welling up in her gentle eyes. Sure enough, the five fallen humans and Oliver were dissolving just like Onryō had. Only…there was no pain and they were going up as brighter particles, gently and peacefully.

" Look up at the skylight Oliver, do you see the stars?" Seraphina said and received a simple nod from the young boy. "Make a wish."

"A wish?" he questioned, of all the times to ask something so childish. Yet the stars were getting closer and relieved his pain even more.

"My only wish…would be to have a mother like you there for me." With that final wish Seraphina, Oliver, and the other five warriors flew into the shining holes of the night sky leaving behind a final whisper.

"You can't wish for something you already have."

* * *

 **And cut! Wow! That was thrilling! Now I know there might be some confusion as to what's going, BUT this is the prologue. This is set not only before the actually story, but also at a certain time. I'm not going to give that information out since there's a chance of spoilage and I wanna keep you guys on your toes until the next official chapter.**

 **As for the update schedule I'm going back to school soon, this is my last week of summer!( Insert audience boo sound) I know it stinks plus there's a possibility some relatives are staying over next weekend, and guess who has to keep the little ones entertained.(points to myself) Yeah I don't mind though but anyways I'll try to update a chapter on Saturdays or Sundays , mainly cuz I'm a good girl an like to get my work done so it's not haunting me at night.**

 **Anyways it's late as I'm finishing up this chapter and I still have to finish the title art cover, just a few details. So I'll put this up in the afternoon when I'm well rested and energized.**

 **Until then, God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good.**


	2. 1: The New Exhibit

**Disclaimer: I don't own Ninjago sadly, just the story idea and my ocs.**

 **Guess who's back! Now few things to go over, first I'm having trouble putting up the title cover that I worked SOOO hard on. I hope it will be up by the time I put up this chapter. Next, this chapter is actually coming to me faster than I intended so I might have this up earlier than what I planned. Now about the T rating, it's not for language or mild adult themes, yadda yadda. It's for the violence, nothing gory but it might get scary and intense fair warning. Now time for me stop blabbing and set the stage!**

* * *

 **Chapter 1: The New Exhibit**

"Having trust in yourself and your powers is important, but having trust in your teammates is more important. For a true, functional team acts and thinks like one person."

"Can we hurry this up, Sensei? I kinda want to see Lloyd fall," Jay complained.

It was just another day in Ninjago, and it was peaceful. The sun was shining, the ninja were training, and Sensei was sipping his tea. All was right in the world. It had been so quiet in New Ninjago City, that is, no crimes that needed the ninja to step in had happened. Other than that, complete peace.

The ninja were currently working on team building exercises, specifically the dreaded trust fall. Well, dreaded if you were in Lloyd's place right now. The Green Ninja had volunteered to be the one that would be "falling." He realized too late that he would be standing on a wooden peg that was four feet off the ground and could only fit one foot.

"Jay," he said annoyed, "if you're gonna keep whining for me to fall, you don't have to participate in the exercise."

But Jay wasn't catching on. "Great idea! Then you have a higher chance of landing on your face!" And with that, Jay ran over by Sensei Wu and pulled out his phone, ready to take a video at any second. It only earned him a look from everyone.

"Come on! It's so peaceful and quiet around here lately, I hate it! The struggle to find entertainment, let alone fighting for the fate of Ninjago, is real."

"I gotta admit, Sparky's got a point," Cole agreed.

"Yeah, Sensei, all we've been doing is training for the past few months," Kai complained.

"I agree," Zane added. "The probability of a threat that requires our assistance is very low. Especially if you observe the recent crime patterns."

"I understand your desire to apply your training to help the people, but there is nothing we can do but train. We can never truly predict when evil will return," Wu said. "We can only prepare. Now then, Kai and Nya will stand in front of Lloyd while Cole and Zane will be in the back."

The ninja followed as instructed. "Good. Lloyd, you must close your eyes and place both hands behind your back until your time is up. Now….begin," and like that Lloyd fell forwards and backwards with the occasional side falls, successfully being caught by his team each time. The exercise was going smoothly, oddly enough it was sort of calming and peaceful. Until-

 **DING!**

Everyone's text alert had went off on their phones, distracting them enough to pull them out. The sudden combined noise startled Lloyd, causing him to lose balance and fall.

"Ow," he groaned. "Who's interrupting our training?"

It was none other than their manager, Dareth. He sent out a group text that read:

 **Ninja! You gotta come to the museum quick! It's an emergency, we need you!**

Nya was the first to speak. "It sounds serious, maybe we should check it out."

"No way!" Jay protested. "He's used that whole 'emergency' text on us how many times?"

"Well, based on my calculations, approximately 37 times. We have fallen for it 37 times, and that's just this month."

It was true, Dareth had sent out "emergency" group texts before to boost their publicity. The team had been called for PSA commercials to talk shows. No matter how hard they tried, they couldn't get out of them most of the time. Two reasons: the younger fans that _adored_ them, and the fan girls that usually blocked their escape routes ahead of time.

It could have been different this time, they haven't gone to the museum in a while. "I say we go," Cole voted. " The last few times we've been there, big things happened."

Kai spoke up. "Yeah, we fought the stone warrior and Lloyd got possessed by Morro. Maybe we can get some action finally."

"Well, I vote no," Jay said, "and Nya's with me. Right, Nya?"

"Surprisingly, I am. We don't know if this is a trick and we shouldn't take the chance. But really, it's up to Lloyd." With that, everyone snapped their heads in his direction, waiting for an answer.

"Well, I think what we should do is…"

* * *

"I'm gonna hurt that kid when this is over!" Jay shouted.

"Shhh. Keep your voice down," his girlfriend said. "If it takes regular clothes and a hat to blend in, I think we'll be fine. Unless you keep screaming like a banshee." The two were paired up and walking to the museum. Lloyd had decided that the team should go. If there was danger or a threat, they had a duty to the people to protect them.

Whether the emergency was real or not, they took precautions to avoid attracting attention. They dressed in civilian clothes and had to walk in groups of two to the museum. The pairs were Nya and Jay, Cole and Zane, and Lloyd and Kai. The were a few blocks separate from each other and everything was going smoothly so far.

* * *

"Lloyd, I'm starting to think this was a bad idea."

"We're fine, stop whispering and act natural."

But Kai couldn't, walking without weapons where a potential fangirl stampede could happen at any moment got his nerves working. As they were coming up to the corner he protested again.

"I'm just saying, we don't have any weapons and we ran out of pepper spray so something might happen….." Lloyd was getting annoyed by Kai's constant complaining and had decided to just zone him out. Unfortunately he was looking down and hadn't heard Kai's warning as they turned the corner.

 **CRASH!**

Lloyd was now on the ground, sitting up he noticed he had mysterious brown stain on his shirt. Kai kneeled beside him. "Dude, didn't you hear me? I said, 'Lloyd, you should look up since we're gonna turn and you don't know what's on the other side.'"

"To be fair, you were whining a lot and zoning you out was my only option," he groaned. He really head butted something **hard**. Finally he opened his eyes all the way and saw a girl, who seemed to be experiencing the same amount of pain. She had thick, light brown curls that were held back by a purple scarf headband, excluding her bangs. She had defined round lips with a natural pink tint. She was wearing black flats with dark jeans and long sleeve pink shirt with a brown stain on it….wait. Brown stain?

Looking closer, he noticed a coffee cup on the ground, dripping with whatever the girl was drinking. This wasn't gonna end well. Kai reacted quickly by grabbing Lloyd's arm and dragging him away from the scene of the crime.

"Kai, are you crazy?! We can't just leave her like that!"

"We can and we will," he spoke in a matter of fact way. "She could be a crazy fan that would strike us the moment she got a good look at us, like a cobra!" Lloyd was about to protest when they heard a yell.

"Hey, you two! Don't leave!"

They turned and sure enough the girl was jogging towards them, holding her phone. Instead of running, they just stood there preparing for the worst. She looked alone so whatever she wanted with them would go quickly. Hopefully. She finally caught up to them. Through nervous, clenched teeth, Lloyd asked," Can we help you?"

Giving him a quick weirded out look, she held out her phone. "You dropped your phone."

What? He checked his pockets, sure enough it wasn't there.

'Nice one, Lloyd,' he thought as he took it. 'You let Kai drag you away from a girl who was just trying to be helpful. I mean come on, your phone has the limited edition Fritz Donnegan phone case, you should have recognized it.'

"Uh, thanks. I'm really sorry about your shirt."

"Nah, don't be," she waved off. "I'm the one who tripped on my own feet because I wasn't paying attention. I should be sorry"

"Yeah, well as nice as this meeting has been we gotta go," Kai butted in. Once again he dragged Lloyd away by the arm to the museum. Lloyd quickly turned back and gave an awkward wave goodbye which she returned.

* * *

Finally, the three groups met up at the museum steps. They quickly used their spinjitzu to change into uniform and walked in where they were greeted by a man with a pocket watch and long mustache that reminded them of Wu's beard. "Welcome!" he said with an accent. "I'm Dr. Saunders, curator of this museum.(A/N Like how I slipped this guy in? Hopefully you know him.) You come, you see. We have important task for you." With that they followed him down a hall.

The ninja were eager to know what they were going up against.

"What are we fighting?"

"Who's the bad guy?"

"Can I get the first punch?" Kai, Jay, and Cole said at once.

"Oh no, there will be no fighting." His calm response got a groan out of the three. "We are setting up new exhibit of valuable things we found."

"Uh, do you mind telling us what these things are?" Nya asked.

"Oh, ja, we sent out team of divers a while back. They tried to find and seek things that would be good to put on display," he stopped in front of a two doors." Now before we go in, I must tell you that our team found very interesting paintings and statues. Along with other things that we still haven't quite figured out what they do or what they were used for. So I have one question for all of you… do you believe in myths and legends?"

After a moment of thought they all gave a nod.

"Very good." And with that he turned and opened the doors. " Ninja, I present our new exhibit, _Legends Lost in Time!_ "

* * *

 **That's a wrap people! Wow, this one's longer and it just kinda flowed out of me. I hope it's not too rushed. Also I put this story up yesterday and I've got about 40 views last I checked. Thank you guys, this means a lot! Anyways, I'll try to put a chapter up on Saturday or Sunday. I only got this one done fast because I'm home alone at the moment so there's no distractions. Also I will try to put up the title art, no matter what I can't upload it. But it's given me time to make better, compared to what I originally planned.**

 **Until then, God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good.**


	3. 2: Myths And Chaos

**Disclaimer: I don't own Ninjago sadly, just the story idea and my ocs.**

 **Hi guys! So I present to you another early chapter! With all the views I'm getting, I just feel pumped and can't think about anything other than writing. Also thank you to those who've reviewed my story so far, it means a lot to hear people give their thoughts or say what they like about the story. Please spread the word to fellow Ninjago fanfic fans to read, review and follow my story. Now then, time to get rolling!**

* * *

 **Chapter 2: Myths And Chaos**

"Ninja, I present our new exhibit, _Legends Lost in Time!_ " The doors flung open to a huge room, the second they blinked, the ninja were in awe and felt like they went back in time. Sure enough, there were statues and paintings of creatures and people that looked like they popped out of an old myth. Smaller exhibits of mystical looking artifacts were scattered across the room's center and walls.

"We still are setting up many things that our team found, I apologize if it's not decent enough for you to be seeing it."

"This," Jay gestured dramatically, "is not decent?! It looks great!"

"Oh, I am getting the warm fuzzy feeling inside me," Dr Saunders gushed. "It brings great joy to know the powerful ninja approve of our new exhibit before it officially opens. You do approve, no?"

"Yeah!" they said in unison.

Kai stepped forward and asked, "So how come it's not 'officially opened?' Plus where exactly did you find all this stuff?"

"Oh ja, we were very lucky. All this and more came from very deep ocean. They were in big trunks that were linked together, like bratwurst." A silence fell over the ninja.

"Also, we found scrolls that tell us what these things are and how they work. Big problem though, only pictures and very little words that come in language we haven't seen before, are all that's on scrolls. It takes so long for us to decipher and then put specific doohickey on display for public."

"Uh Dr. Saunders," Zane started. " Was there anything in the scrolls or artifacts that indicates a possible curse or anything relating to trouble?"

He put an arm around the nindroid. "Oh no, my shiny friend. Nothing like that, why you ask question and sound so scared?"

Before anyone could say a word, Saunders changed the subject suddenly.

"Now then, we called you ninja because our security is short staffed today. We still have lot to setup, and some trucks of ours holding bigger pieces have been delayed. While the rest of museum is open to public, a thief could sneak in here. So we you need to help keep watch over the exhibit and transitions, and we fortunately have time before museum opens so please enjoy the sneaky preview." Just like that, he walked out of the room and slammed the doors behind him.

* * *

The ninja were still deep in thought, finding _all_ of these artifacts in trunks linked together at the bottom of the ocean? No one would say it, but something was really off here. Had the museum staff even thought about how coincidentally creepy it was? Or even the fact that it might have a threat to Ninjago and bring doom? In hopes of getting the thought out of their heads, they dispersed and examined the displays.

Kai and Jay ended up looking at painting of a red ogre like creature, wielding an iron club over its shoulder. It had wild, long hair with two curved horns that poked out from it, disfigured sharp fangs that stuck out from its mouth, and had two toes on each foot. It wore a tiger striped loincloth around its waist, the ogre had intimidating black eyes with red irises. The description below read:

 **Oni: One of the fiercest demons to exist. They are unnecessarily strong, even for themselves. Oni come in many colors along with a different number of fingers, toes, and eyes. Beware the rare one eyed oni, for they are the ones that hunt humans down.**

"Uh, what do they mean by that?" Jay whimpered out.

"I don't know, I guess they hunt people down to eat or something." Kai's response only got a pale faced Jay, body shaking and lip quivering. "Oh, come on dude," he teased. "It's only a myth, nothing to be scared of. Right?"

Nya was standing in front of a medium, marble statue of a woman. There was not much detail due to its lack of color, but the woman looked normal. Except for her hair. If you looked very closely, you could see that every strand of her long hair was pointed with thorns. Her description read:

 **Harionago: A beautiful women with deadly thorn tipped hair. When she controls her hair, she can ensnare anyone into a deadly trap. Compared to regular hair, it's very hard to cut. Never laugh at her, unless you have a death wish.**

'Never laugh at her? Can't she take a joke, and what did they mean by death wish?' Nya thought.

Cole and Zane were looking at a small artifact near the center room, it seemed to resemble a glass clock. The hands on it looked like, well actual hands! What's more, the clock had seven dots on its border. On the top was a pink dot with a crack in it, going from the right was a red one, black, light blue, darker blue, white, and finally a green one.

"This one doesn't have a description yet," Cole said and pointed at the pink dot. "It also looks like it got banged up a little."

"If that is the case," Zane pondered, "shouldn't the rest of the clock have suffered some damage? Glass is very fragile, and this clock looks particularly thin enough to shatter if it was handled improperly in any way."

Finally, Lloyd was observing a tall painting of a woman. Sadly the painting also had no description, and seemed to have suffered some damage from being underwater for who knows how long. From what he could make out, the woman had long, dark brown curls that reached down her back, with the exception of one pink curl parted to her left. She wore an off shoulder, bell sleeved white dress that turned to pink as it went to the ground. Her bangs almost covered her closed eyes, she had defined lips with a natural pink color. It looked like she was praying from the way she held her hands, something about her though seemed familiar.

" _I'm here."_

Lloyd whipped around. "Who said that?" His teammates turned towards him with a confused look.

"Who said what?" Jay asked. Lloyd didn't know how to answer, maybe it was just in his head. He did bump it hard twice today, he just forgot about it and changed the subject.

"So how much time do we have until the museum opens?"

"5 minutes and counting," Zane replied.

"Well, we better get planning then!" The ninja huddled together, with Lloyd giving one final look over his shoulder at the painted lady.

* * *

It had been 3 hours since the museum had opened, the ninja had split into pairs once again to make things easier. Cole and Kai helped load in the rest of the artifacts off the trucks, meanwhile Jay and Zane were in the room itself keeping guard. That left Lloyd and Nya to guard the doors discreetly as civilians. The two couldn't go far from the doors, but pretending to look at the nearby exhibits got boring really fast.

Pretty soon they got looks from the museum goers. Pacing back and forth to look at the same exhibits was, well, kind of weird. Everything seemed normal, after a brief eye signal, they spread out farther to avoid more attention. Nya walked farther down a nearby hall while Lloyd headed near the bottomless pit exhibit. It was the least popular exhibit so he wouldn't attract too much attention to himself. After the stone warrior incident, many believed they would crawl up the hole, dragging anyone who came too close down forever. It was perfect!

As he walked by, he noticed someone was **actually** at the exhibit. They turned around to leave, instantly both Lloyd and the person stopped. It was the girl he bumped into earlier! Both just stood there, staring at each other, until she walked towards him. "Hey, you're that boy I spilled my cocoa on earlier."

'Guess she didn't recognize me from a distance,' he thought.

"Uh yeah, I still have the bump on my head." That got a laugh out of her.

"I also see you kept the stain on your shirt too." He looked down, sure enough it was still there. Honestly he forgot about it, but oddly enough he was glad that he did.

"Yeah, so did you," he replie, pointing towards the stain on her pink shirt.

"What can I say?" she shrugged, "I like to keep mementos of when something exciting happens. So far this makes one in my collection."

It seemed like she didn't know he was the Green Ninja and she was friendly, so he just played along. Holding out his hand he smiled. "I didn't introduce myself, I'm Lloyd."

The girl returned his gesture. "Nice to meet ya, Lloyd. I'm Maria."

* * *

"What do you mean you lost him?!"

The ninja, excluding Lloyd, regrouped in the exhibit where Nya was currently being scolded by her brother. She couldn't find Lloyd anywhere after they split up, her only option was to check with the others. Pretty soon the word spread fast among them, and you can see how that turned out. Of all people to be so irresponsible, Nya was dead last on the list. Heck, she wasn't even on the list in the first place!

"I'm sorry, but I don't see why you're freaking out! He's not a kid anymore! He can defend himself!" she shouted.

Zane stepped between the two. "Please, lower your voices. Yelling will only attract attention to us, we can't jeopardize our mission."

"Forget about the mission!" Cole interrupted. "Lloyd's lost and like we stated before, big and bad things happen here!"

"Think about it, Zane," Jay thought, "he could've been outnumbered and kidnapped by bad guys who have something against us. Or people who are holding him for ransom! Or fangirls! **WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO GET A NEW LLOYD IF IT'S FANGIRLS!** "

By this point the blue ninja grabbed Cole, shaking him as he realized the seriousness of the situation. Nya had to help the ghost pry him off, after that awkward moment Kai took charge. "Here's what we'll do. We split up in disguise and look for him, if we see **any** trace of him we report it. Agreed?"

"Agreed," they replied and instantly used their spinjitzu to change from their gi (A/N: Not sure if you put gis when it's plural so we'll go with gi.) into regular clothes.

Before they walked out from the exhibit, Zane stopped them. "What if Lloyd left because he simply had something else to do?"

There was a silence, then they all started laughing hard. "Good one, Zane!" Jay managed to say. "Lloyd's not the kind of guy to just leave without telling someone."

"Yeah," Kai joined in, "unless he had a hot date!"

* * *

"You're sure we can go in here Lloyd? I don't see anyone else around here."

"Positive, this exhibit isn't too popular either because it's, uh… scary! Yeah, it can get scary!" With that said, he continued to lead Maria into the _Legends Lost in Time_ exhibit. He didn't want to come off as creepy, but something kept bothering him. Every time Lloyd looked at Maria, he kept thinking about the painted lady. They sort of looked…similar.

'No! No way!' he tried convincing himself. 'That lady in the painting is from a myth, why else would it be in there? Maria has nothing to do with her, but just in case I should compare them.'

They finally made it, and to his disappointment, Jay and Zane weren't inside! ' They better have a good reason why they left their post.' Ignoring that fact, he walked up to the painted lady once more.

"Hey Maria, do you think can stand by this painting for a sec?" No answer. "Uh…Maria?"

"Back here! You gotta check this thing out!" Sure enough she was standing in front of the glass clock. He walked back to see her staring closely at all its little details. "This one looks so cool!"

"It's just a clock. Now, I'm wondering if you could-"

"Hang on, Lloyd. Look at that pink dot," she pointed, touching it with the very tip of her finger. Then…

 **ZAP!**

A pink aura shot out of the clock, hitting Maria's heart! She screamed out in fear and slight pain, walking backwards she felt dizzy and her eyes rolled to the back of her head. She had fallen and was out cold. Lloyd, unable to process what happened, just ran to her side silently and tried to wake her up. No matter how much he shook her and called her name, she refused to wake up.

Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed a glow coming from the left side of her head. It started glowing brighter and brighter, pretty soon it became a blinding light. When it was over Lloyd just gaped at her hair, for there in her curls was now one pink curl.

* * *

 **Somewhere deep in an unknown darkness:**

Silence. Only that could be heard, it echoed off the dark caves for so long. Until now, a deep groan, a yawn started to form. Yellow eyes pierced the shadows, highlighting the cage bars that limited its sight. Finally, a voice that once was powerful enough to be heard by all, came out as an weak, raspy voice.

It whispered, "Chaos has begun."

* * *

 **Wow! This one even got me on the edge of my seat! Hope you guys like this chapter. So we have gotten into some more of the mythology part of my story, and you met my other oc Maria! Don't worry I didn't kill her, she's part of this story.**

 **Now about the story so far, I know I said I was gonna update on Saturdays and Sundays, but I just got motivated. So I made a longer chapter, let's just say this is my Saturday/Sunday chapter okay? If I have time, I could update on Labor Day since I don't have school that day. (Audience cheering) But I can't promise anything (Audience booing throwing things.) Settle down, lastly about Maria, I'm gonna bounce the spotlight around so it's not all about her. There will be story development that will focus on the canon cast so everyone gets a turn and no one becomes a Mary Sue or a diva, etc, etc.**

 **But until then, God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good people! Bye!**


	4. 3:The Birth Of Hope

**Disclaimer: Sadly, I don't own Ninjago. Only the story idea and my ocs.**

 **I'm back people! Plus I'm a little shocked myself but I got the proposed chapter done early!(audience cheers) Now this one's a long one so let's hop in!**

* * *

 **Chapter 3: The Birth Of Hope**

"Maria! Come on, wake up!" Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Maria opened her eyes to find Lloyd holding her.

"L-Lloyd?" she squeaked out. "What happened? Why are you holding me?" She gently pushed him away and stood up; she felt a throbbing pain in her head that was too strong to be any headache.

"Maria…" she turned. "…how do you feel about having a new hairstyle?" he asked. With that said, she quickly pulled out her phone, looked at her reflection, and screamed.

"YOU DYED MY HAIR WHILE I WAS UNCONSCIOUS?!"

He put his hands in surrender. "No I didn't! You touched that clock and while you were out, your hair just started turning pink!"

"Okay, Lloyd. Tell the truth, what's going on?" Oh boy, this was going to be hard to explain.

* * *

The rest of the ninja were still struggling to find Lloyd, they went and found Dr. Saunders in his office, warning him of their dilemma. "Oh don't worry buddies, we can use security cameras to find where your friend is.." they started cheering in response, "...I have only teeny favor that I want you to do for me first," Saunders finished, sending a groan amongst the group.

"You see, we are having trouble..." he reached below his desk and pulled out a bunch of scrolls, "…deciphering these scrolls. These are the most complicated of all, so I got to thinking, you ninja are smart in the noodle. Maybe you could figure out what they mean?"

"We can try, but it will take a long time with this many," Zane answered. He pulled out one scroll and let it unravel past their feet.

"Goody! Now I'll pull up cameras on my computer, and then we'll have found your friend!" He started logging in and setting up his computer while the ninja huddled around him.

"Now don't think this is going to be easy," Jay interrupted, "but we're trained to have the eyes of a hawk. If _we_ can't find Lloyd, then it might be very hard-"

"Found him!"

"What?!"

"He's back at the exhibit…" Saunders zoomed the camera in on him, "ooooh, and he's with a girl."

"WHAT?!" The ninja shouted, and started talking at once.

"He's okay?!"

"With a girl?!"

"He really **did** have a date?!"

"This does not compute!"

"He actually ditched us!" They were furious, and were charging out the door when..

"Wait! I can turn the sound on. Maybe then we find out why your friend left you," they turned around slowly and answered together.

"Do it."

* * *

"So then I was shaking you to wake up. Then you got that pink curl, and then you woke up."

Lloyd had finished explaining EVERYTHING. Him and the ninja, their mission, and most importantly, why he brought Maria here in the first place. She just had a blank face and was standing very still, the poor girl was trying to understand everything she just heard. She finally looked back at the lady in the painting, then sadly back at her own reflection on her phone.

'I really do look like her,' she thought. 'But why? This painting's _got_ to be a few hundred years old or something. What's the connection?'

"Maria," Lloyd said, "You could come with me. We can find out why this is happening and what this all means." Putting a hand on her shoulder, she turned to face him and simply nodded.

"But I'm going to have to call my team first, you know tell them about what's going on." He pulled his sleeve back, turned on his communication device, and started to speak into it. "Hey guys, there's something I have to-"

 ** _"LLOYD MONTGOMERY GARMADON!"_**

After that, Lloyd was pretty sure he got deaf in one ear. "Uh, yeah?" he asked, almost scared.

Then Kai's voice came up, _" I can't believe you man, you're lucky we heard why you ditched us. But you're still in trouble with Sensei and your mom!"_

"Were you guys _spying_ on me?"

 _"Don't change the subject! **You're** the one that ditched us in the first place! Just come to Dareth's dojo, the Bounty will be parked on top."_

He shut off his device and looked back Maria. Lloyd awkwardly scratched the back of his neck as he asked,"So….are you ready to go?"

"Uh yeah, lead the way." With that said they walked out of the exhibit, thinking about what was to come from all this chaos.

* * *

After finally getting on to Destiny's Bounty, and receiving a few hits on the head and scoldings in Lloyd's case, Misako and Wu went to work on the scrolls. That left the ninja free to give Maria a tour around the bounty, they then decided to relax in the dining room and chat.

Nya started the conversation. "So Maria, where're you from?"

"I'm came from way out in the country, you know where it's kinda low tech. I just got this phone as soon as I came here." She pulled it out and showed it off. It didn't even have a case to protect it!

Zane asked. "Maria, what brought you here to New Ninjago City? I imagine it's quite an adjustment from your usual lifestyle."

Maria shrugged. "Well, yeah, it is. I just wanted a little change and have a little fun. I've wanted to travel when I was young. I didn't think," she pulled out her new curl to show the others, " it would involve crazy stuff like this to happen to me."

Her action only brought a grim look to Lloyd's face. 'This is my fault, I brought her to the exhibit,' he thought. 'She wanted a new life, what if I gave her one that she'll hate and have to put up with forever?'

His thoughts were interrupted as Sensei's voice came over the loud speaker. "Is this thing on? Hang on let me adjust the volume.." Feedback suddenly screeched, causing the teens to hold their ears in pain. "I think I got it. Ninja and Maria, come to the bridge. We have an answer to Maria's state of being, but keep in mind, most of the questions you might ask cannot be answered yet."

After a confused look, they got up and headed down to get some answers.

The seven teens came in and stood around the table, dozens of scrolls were rolled across. Just like Dr. Saunders had said, they had mainly pictures. Only a few of them had some similarities; some of them had the clock artifact, with the difference of a pink dot with no crack in it. Others had the painted lady fighting a formless shadow.

"Pupils and Maria.." each looked at him as he called them. "...please direct your attention towards Misako, she'll tell you what we've translated."

"Listen closely, especially you Maria," she picked up a scroll and started reading.

"Long before even the first Spinjitzu Master had been born, our world and the first people lived in peace, with no knowledge of hate or violence. As time went on, they discovered violence, hate, and from their actions, death. The spirits of the people who suffered at the hands of death, reincarnated into powerful demons and creatures. Soon a war broke out between all the different forms of life.

"Neither side was winning or had thoughts of giving up, they only wanted to either avenge the fallen or get revenge. With all the violence, they had lost so many that they loved and cared for. It was then, they gave birth to a new feeling in their hearts: hope. They had hope that one day the war would end and resume their peaceful lives, they hoped to be reunited with all those they lost. It was weak at first, but many beings fought and died with hope in their hearts for that day. Eventually the hope of the fallen had gotten stronger until that feeling had grown into a spirit that became its embodiment, her name was Seraphina."

Misako stopped reading, causing her to be bombarded with questions.

"Well, what happened?"

"What did Seraphina do?"

"Did everyone die?" A whack on the head from Sensei's staff silenced Kai, Cole, and Jay.

"Enough. You must be patient, we translated what was easy for us to understand. Some of it has no connection to what we just read, many are bits and pieces that have yet to give us a clear answer of what is to come from all this. The rest will take weeks, maybe even months to figure out."

That did it, the ninja started complaining and demanding to hear the rest. Frustrated, they argued with the elders, there had to be another way to hear the rest faster. They kept going at it when…

"HEY!" In an instant, all eyes were on Maria. The attention got her so embarrassed, she could only make eye contact with the ground. She finally spoke slowly, "Sorry for yelling….but how does all this …relate to me?"

Misako walked towards her and placed both hands on her shoulders. "From what I learned, Seraphina was a spirit queen and had a connection to life and reincarnation. She was opposite to a demon king that was connected to death and disintegration, if one of them were to be destroyed, the other must follow suit to obtain balance. Seraphina had no choice but to only seal the demon away and weaken him, eventually she perished and both disappeared."

"What are you saying?"

"I believe in her final moments, Seraphina knew she had to find a way get rid of the demon king forever. So using the last of her strength, she must have used that clock artifact as way to reincarnate herself into an entirely different species to finish him off one day, a whole new body that would be undetected by evil. That clock must be the key that could fully return her power to her new body, and you touched it."

Maria's eyes widened. "Are you saying I stole her powers?"

Misako looked down. "It's not stealing….if it was yours originally."

There was loud silence, everyone looked at Maria with wide eyes and mouths slightly open. She backed up breathing audibly, looked at the others with tears starting to form in her eyes, and ran out of the room. It was moments before Lloyd decided to run out after her.

* * *

Lloyd looked for her, he didn't have to look long for there she was, sitting on the deck. She was holding her knees to her chest, her head was down and she sobbed softly. He sat down next to her, waiting for her to settle down a bit more before trying to talk to her. Soon she stopped and brought her head up.

"Maria, are you ready talk about it?"

"What's there to talk about?" Maria stood up and sat farther from him. It only made him get up and sit right back next to her.

"This whole 'reincarnation from a spirit queen' has you upset. I'm hear to listen to anything you say."

"Anything?" He nodded his head. "Fine. Then tell me, why is this happening to me? Why do I have to clean up the mess of some spirit that I had no clue about? Why do I have to possibly fight a bunch of bad guys, and a demon king, that want me dead again, for good this time?!" Just like that she started sobbing again, struggling to wipe away the tears.

Lloyd pulled her in and put an arm around her, trying to calm her down. "Hey, it's going to be okay. Look, I'm not gonna say 'I understand' because I don't. What I _do_ understand is how unfair this feels."

Her sobbing dialed down to sniffling. "W-what do you mean?"

"Well it's happened to me a few times. I had to fight my father, I saved him but then I sent him away forever. Throughout all of it, I kept thinking why destiny would play with me like this."

"I'm so sorry. What'd you do?"

"Nothing. Destiny had a plan for me, and it was great. I got my father back, the time I spent with him made me feel like a regular guy. I got to see him one more time before he was gone completely, and he gave me wisdom that continues to inspire me to become a Sensei. Through it all, my family was there to support me. So you see, sometimes the path of destiny gets rough and you can't do anything to avoid it. What you can do is choose to walk it alone or with someone."

Maria stood up and took a deep breath. "Thanks, Lloyd. I get what you're saying, but I can't put _my_ family in danger. Maybe I _have_ to go through this alone."

"You don't have to. You could come with us, we can help you. It's our duty to protect people no matter what, and that includes you."

"You tell her, Lloyd!"

Both of them turned and saw the rest of the team standing with them on deck. They were all smiling and started walking towards the two.

"You guys were spying on me again?" Lloyd asked annoyed, but Jay held up a hand to stop him from saying any more.

"It's not spying, if you want to make a dramatic entrance. We just had to listen in on what you guys were talking about, how else were we supposed to say the right thing to enter in on?"

"I think what my boyfriend is trying to say is, we'd love to have you as a part of our family."

"I agree, we may be different when you observe us closely," the nindroid gestured to the team and himself, " but that does not stop us fighting by each other's side and for each other."

"Yeah, I always wanted another sister."

"And I could use a hand in the kitchen for when I make my special duck chowder!" Cole's statement only brought a look of pure horror to the ninja's faces.

"Yeah, maybe not the chowder part, I hope." Lloyd held out a welcoming hand. "So what do you say? Wanna be a part of our family?"

Maria just looked down, giving thought to the question. The silence made everyone lean in, she finally looked up. "Just one question," she pointed at Lloyd's gi, "do those come in pink?"

Everyone laughed at her answer. That was that, they had new sister and had no clue what was gonna happen or what they were going up against. But it didn't matter, they had someone else to fight for.

* * *

 **Deep into the unknown darkness:**

Five shadows sat around a stone table, it glowed with dark magic as it brought up visuals of the ninja welcoming Maria in.

"I can't believe this," a nasally high voice rang out. " _That_ _girl_ is Seraphina?! I use to be jealous of her hair, but this is just sad. I mean her curls aren't as long, and they're so loose and messy, they're almost wavy!

"Don't let her pathetic human looks fool you," a deep voice purred out. "She's got the pink curl, and she brought us back to life via Onryō."

"Such is the strength of Seraphina," this time a sickly woman's voice spoke. "The child's powers are not her own. They are merely a fraction of what Seraphina's were, and yet they are a cheap copy. How pathetic."

"Well let's get her, we'll grind her into the ground! It's about time we finish her off!" The voice came from a fairly large being with the volume it gave off, followed by an echo of rattling bones.

"No, you fools," a voice spoke with classy tone of gentleman, though the owner of such a voice was far from human. "The master is still weak, he used what little power he had equal to that human to bring us back to life. If that happened just by that girl getting her powers, she is capable of so much more."

"Do you intend for us to just stay down here and watch over the child?"

"Yes, I have a reason. She has protection again by six warriors that deep down are pathetic humans. Yet they are unaware of our intentions, the seven of them understand nothing. Either way, they could be quite useful to us. Let them play hero, it's fun to pretend about things that can't happen in real life."

* * *

 **Cut! Wow, things are brewing! But anyways, I hope you guys like this chapter! Please read, review and follow my story, tell that to fellow Ninjago fanfic fans. Thank you so much to those who have been reviewing and following my story it means a lot. Plus I'm free this weekend which means, a new chapter on Saturday or Sunday!**

 **So until then, God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good.**


	5. 4: The Element Of Spirit

**Disclaimer: Sadly, I don't own Ninjago. Only the story idea and the ocs.**

 **I'm back lovelies! Before we get in I just want to say I'm so happy! I've reached 200 views on my story! If we could have more reviews, follows, and favorites on this story, I would explode! Not really because then the story would end on a cliffhanger. Any who, let's hop on in!**

* * *

 **Chapter 4: The Element Of Spirit**

It had to be one of the most beautiful and peaceful mornings in the history of Ninjago. The sun was waking up with the prettiest shades of gold and pink, it pierced the leftover night and made lavender clouds in the sky. The trees and flowers were dripping with morning dew after a harsh thunder storm, they bloomed so timidly and released their sweet fragrances into the chilled air. Yes, this morning was just so peaceful, it was simple, it was….

 **BONG! BONG! BONG!**

"Ughhhh! Nya, make the alarm clock shut up! It's 5 o'clock in the morning!"

"I would if I could, there's just two things. That's not an alarm clock, and _he_ wont shut up no matter what I try."

Wednesday. It was Wednesday, which meant sunrise exercise. Maria never suffered getting up this early, nor had she been warned or else _all_ of them would have gone to bed earlier. She moved into Nya's room yesterday and was sleeping on the floor in a sleeping bag. It was one of the only few things she took with her when she left home, that gave her and the ninja plenty of time to goof around as an initiation to the team. Had any of them remembered they had sunrise exercise, they wouldn't have stayed up to midnight.

Maria sat up and started rubbing the sleep from her eyes. "What do you mean _he?"_

" I meant Sensei Wu, it's Wednesday which means we have training at sunrise." Nya stopped and let out a long yawn. "He wakes us up with a gong, and since he won't stop until we come out on deck, I suggest you get dressed."

Both girls dragged themselves out of their beds and started to get ready. Nya changed into her gi while Maria, who had no uniform, got dressed in gray sweatpants with a pink tank top. She tied her messy curls back in a ponytail with her favorite purple scarf, finally both of them made their way to the deck. The boys had beaten them to the deck and were standing in line, although they looked like they were ready to pass out on deck any second.

Sensei Wu walked past all of them and made his way to the front, he started to talk. "Now then pupils, today's sunrise exercise will be different. We are going to focus on meditation, try not to fall asleep."

Everyone just responded with a groan, waking up at 5 in the morning **just** to **meditate**? They were not happy about this, begrudgingly they followed his instructions.

" Now, everyone sit down. Cross your legs and close your..." a hand shot up, "...yes, what is it, Zane?"

"Sensei, I fail to see why meditation is our sunrise exercise. We have done it before, but never in place of our regular stretching."

"Yeah Sensei," Kai interrupted. "Why can't we just do regular stretches that wake us up? You know we're just gonna pass out."

"We are meditating to get in touch with the energy of the spirits around us."

Jay gasped. "You mean we're gonna see the future, like you do whenever you use the spirit smoke?!"

"Not exactly, now pay attention. Close your eyes and breathe, listen to all around you. Allow your heart to welcome in anything it feels and hears. Be patient, do not stop until you feel something within your whole body."

Five minutes went by, then ten, twenty, thirty. Finally Cole was the first to answer.

"Sensei, I feel it. I actually feel something!"

"What do you feel?"

"It feels weird, but it's spreading around my core. It feels, it feels…." He was cut off by a low rumbling sound in his stomach that made everyone look at him, trying to hold back their laughter.

"It feels like hunger."

They couldn't hold it in, everyone started laughing. Everyone except Wu who had disappointment written all over his face. He took a deep breath and stood up. "I suppose, we can break for breakfast."

Everyone cheered and ran toward the dining room, Kai looked back when he didn't see Sensei in the small crowd. The old man was still on deck, now with a look of confusion on his face. He mumbled something under his breath along the lines of 'l thought Maria would.' The rest couldn't be made out, Kai just ran back to join the others, thinking of what Sensei had said.

* * *

The ninja were gathered around the table, eating whatever they found edible. Kai looked and found Maria at the end of the table, stuffing her face with oatmeal. He sat down next to her, hoping to see if the girl had felt anything during their exercise.

"So Maria, how'd you like your first sunrise exercise?"

She was currently trying to swallow down her breakfast, and decided to speak between bites.

"Well it was very….relaxing. I don't know….what the whole…point was. But other than that…not too bad. I'll just have to….go to bed…earlier next time."

"Well, did you _feel_ anything during it?"

"Nah, I was getting kinda hungry though. Why? Did you feel something?"

"Uhh no, none of you guys felt anything?"

"Kai, you were there," Lloyd turned toward him. "Sensei said that we have to be patient. It might take us days or weeks to feel whatever it is we have to feel."

Right on cue, Sensei Wu came into the dining room with Misako, both with serious look on their face. Everyone stopped eating and focused on them.

"Pupils, there's been news of a beast terrorizing forests that are close to a village. You must get down there immediately."

Kai motioned for him to calm down."Sensei, relax a little. We can handle it. So what's this beast like?"

"Sightings from villagers describe it as an ogre with red skin, it has a fierce temper that is even more dangerous when it swings its iron club."

Kai and Jay both turned pale, the exhibit at the museum said the same thing about oni. It couldn't be, if it was, then they were beyond dead. Still, they filed out the door and prepared to take off. Maria was at the back of the group, she stopped suddenly and turned to find Misako had grabbed her hand.

"You can't go yet, Maria. You have no powers or fighting ability, we must train you."

"But they need me! That thing is probably trying to find me, I'm not going to stay here and hide while they risk their lives!"

"Which gives us more reason to train you," Sensei added."The exercise today was focused on you, Maria. As the elemental master of spirit, you must be safe and know how to protect yourself. If something were to happen to you, peace may be destroyed forever. We can't take any risks."

'Elemental master of spirit? I don't even know if I have powers! Then again, who wants to die?' She gave a nod and looked to where the others had exited, 'Please be careful guys, I can't have someone else get hurt because I'm weak.'

* * *

Maria, Wu, and Misako were on deck, they tried taking notes of anything she'd see to help understand her powers. After 30 minutes of trying, Wu decided to give a hint at what needed to be accomplished from this exercise.

"Spirit is in everything, Maria, it connects all things and unites. When you open your heart, you open a pathway to your soul. This way you can feel, see, and hear the spirit energy in all things around you," Wu explained. "Now try again, be patient. When you close your eyes, remind yourself that you are safe in your own darkness."

Maria did as she was told. Darkness. That's all there was, it was gentle and so peaceful. It felt welcoming and…wait. What was..?

"Sensei! Misako! I see something!"

Misako pulled out her notepad. "What do you see? Is it a symbol or a person?"

"I see… I-I see…"

From the darkness she heard a voice and saw a blurry light. It got clearer and clearer until she saw something squirming. Then the voice split into two, one angered and one scared until…

" _Let me go! Seraphina won't let you get away with this!"_

" _ **ENOUGH!"**_

A vision of a young boy came into the clear, he had silver white hair and torn green clothing. His face was stained from tears of fear, he was restrained by dark red claws that came from the darkness. Suddenly two yellow eyes pierced the shadows of her mind, it flashed a wicked white smile as the boy was turning into a familiar face. He now looked like…

" _Look at what I've got, Seraphina."_

" _Help me!"_ The words echoed out from Lloyd's mouth.

"No, don't hurt him!"

"Maria, open your eyes!"

As soon as she did, her vision was blurred by the light that reflected off her tears. She felt weak and almost fell face down, Sensei and Misako supported her up. Misako was the first to question.

"What happened? What did you see?"

She was able to whisper out a word. A word that she never heard before in her life, but another one.

"Onryō."

* * *

"Kai, are you feeling okay?" Nya called out to him.

"Yeah, I'm good."

Since they left the bounty, Kai was experiencing on and off headaches. They were flying their dragons to the forest, if he lost concentration now, it could affect his safety. Finally they made it and landed in the middle of tall pine trees, his headache only got stronger and stronger. Soon he couldn't take it anymore, he fell to his knees and held his head with his eyes shut tight. The team surrounded him, trying to figure out what was wrong.

Kai couldn't hear anything, he saw darkness that continued for an eternity. Then he saw a light, it was red and got clearer to reveal a smooth, round, red gem. It was beckoning him, it wanted him to grab it and take it with him. It belonged to him, he just knew that…

"Kai. Open your eyes…" Lloyd whispered, "… and what ever you do, don't scream."

He did what he was told and was shocked at what he saw. He probably couldn't scream if he wanted, for there stood a true beast in place of the gem he envisioned.

There stood a one eyed oni.

* * *

 **Ooh, things are getting tense! Now we're getting into some adventure! I'm happy I actually updated when I said I would. Hope you enjoyed this chapter, I will be back to tell how this will end.**

 **Until then, God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good.**


	6. 5:Anger's Strength

**Disclaimer: Sadly, I don't Ninjago. Just the story idea and the ocs.**

 **Hi guys! Before we head in I just wanna say I'm a little upset that I haven't been getting reviews for my recent chapters, only one or none. So I'm asking you good people to please review my story, it helps to have your honest opinion on what you think I could improve on or what you like so I know what to keep in the story. Unless of course your being a bully as in, being a jerk and saying legitimately rude and insensitive things about the story. We all know that's not allowed here on Fanfiction and we shouldn't act like that, be good to each other.**

 **Also I'm gonna add Friday to my update dates since I'm pretty low on homework FOR NOW.**

 **Now that that's over with, on with the show!**

* * *

 **Chapter 5: Anger's Strength**

Kai couldn't have screamed if he tried, he kept staring at the creature before him and his friends. A one eyed oni was actually standing in front of them, he couldn't move or think, he was paralyzed. He tried keeping his breathing steady and his fear under control, he had teased Jay back at the museum about oni eating people. If that was true, then he had no way out of this.

Kai's breathing came to a halt with the covering of a hand over his mouth. The collar on his gi pulled behind him and gave him a slight choking feeling, indicating he was being dragged away. When he was released, he saw that he was pulled away by his team behind a gathering of tall pines. They all shared a face of fear and held a finger up to their lips to keep him quiet. He did as he was signaled and timidly peeked at their possible opponent.

The 18 feet oni shared similarities with the one they saw in the painting. This one however had its tiger stripe loincloth cover its left arm, bulging with muscles that were all over its body. Its fangs stuck out but looked chipped and yellow, but what entranced Kai was its bloodshot eye that darted around looking for who knows what. Finally, after a long moment of tension, the beast sat down and promptly fell asleep, leaning on its iron club.

"Kaithat'sanoniliketheonewesawinthemueseum!"

"Jay!" Kai whispered yelled. "Stop spitting in my ear and talk like you're not a motormouth for just one moment in your life, please!"

"It's an oni! Like the one we saw in the museum! It's gonna eat us!"

That got everyone's attention. "WHAT?!"

Nya stepped in between the two and gave her brother a death glare. "Spill it Kai, what's this about that thing eating us?"

" Well….I might have seen an exhibit about an oni, which is that thing over there, and the display might have said that you gotta be especially careful around the oni with the one eye. Plus I might have teased Jay that it probably means that they hunt people down cause they eat them, and I might have said this because I thought… they didn't…. exist?"

If he thought they were mad before, then I guess you could say that they were at a level of madness that made it tempting for Kai to sacrifice himself to the oni. He would have too if Cole didn't grab him by the front of his collar and got face to face with him.

"That thing eats people?! And you decided to bring this up now when its right next to a village with people?!"

"Like I said before, I didn't think they existed."

"This is unacceptable, Kai," Zane butted in. "People could have gotten hurt around that creature. If it really eats people, I fear we may be next on its menu!"

It was Lloyd's turn to express his disappointment and pulled him from Cole's death grip. "You should have told us earlier. Now we put ourselves in a deadly situation, literally! We have to go back home and plan, it's all we can do while that thing is sleeping and inactive."

The team silently creeped away from the beast until they got far enough from the beast. They came to cliff and prepared to summon their dragons when…

 **Boom…Boom…BOOM,BOOM,BOOM,BOOM!**

They whipped around to the sound and saw it in action. The oni had followed them, its bloodshot eye stared down on them as it licked its lips. It finally let out a roar that went from a deep growl to a high pitched volume, making the ninja hold their ears in pain as they shook. When it was done, they were still stunned by the bloodcurdling scream the oni had produced. The beast took this chance to wind up its club and swing it down on the six.

* * *

Maria, Wu and Misako were sitting in the bridge examining the scrolls again. Something was missing, something big that they had to find if they wanted to defeat Onryō. They got cracking on them after Maria's meditation exercises were cut off. She was still shocked from the vision she got while mediating, it didn't help when Misako had told her it wasn't because of her powers, but most likely that the demon king was intimidating her and trying to break her spirit by sending her a vision.

She couldn't focus on the scrolls laid out before her, she kept thinking about the boy in her vision. Not Lloyd but the other one. Take away the silver white hair that's combed down in a messy fashion with strands of hair between his eyes, and you would have a Lloyd lookalike. He looked around the same age as Lloyd, he had the same child like face and sparkling eyes. His name could be felt on the tip of her tongue but she just couldn't figure it out.

'Who was that boy?' Maria thought. 'And why did I feel more upset when he was in pain compared to Lloyd in the vision?'

"That's it!" Misako stood up abruptly, the action made the girl and old sensei jump back a little.

" I think I know what the demon king is after," she claimed as she pulled out a scroll that had an image of the clock artifact. Behind it was Seraphina praying with six shadowed figures, three on each side of her. Underneath it was an inscription that read, 'Septem gemmis, clavem ad cor.'

"That's great, Misako! Just one thing, what the heck does this mean?"

"The inscription below says 'The Seven Gems, keys to the heart.' I believe that these dots on the clock represent those gems."

Sensei pointed to the shadowed figures. "Who are these people around Seraphina? Also, have you figured out if the clock serves another purpose?"

Misako frowned."Not yet, but I've theorized that the people around her were the ones who she gave the gems to, her own personal army. Since she had a connection with life, I can imagine that Onryō want these to be destroyed or use them to his advantage. The phrase ' keys to the heart,' may refer to how Seraphina created life and controlled reincarnation through these seven gems."

"Interesting. If Seraphina used them for good, she could oversee the creation of life, if Onryō uses them for evil…"

"Then he could cause the death of everyone!" Maria realized in shock. "We need the others help if we want to find these gems. When are they coming back?"

"Patience, child. I know without a doubt, my pupils are on their way back from victory."

* * *

"C'mon guys, snap out of it!"

Kai opened his eyes and saw that Cole had grabbed the oni's club, and struggled to keep it from crushing them. He pulled down his hood, whipped out his sword, and prepared to fight. It wasn't long until the other ninja had recovered from the shock and followed suit to fight the oni. Cole released the club with a quick dodge roll to the side, and hit the ground causing a rock wall to separate the fighters.

Lloyd quickly took charge as leader. "Nya, you and I will distract it with aerial attacks and lead it into the forest. Cole and Zane, you guys look for a weak point while Kai and Jay attack it on the ground and try to weaken it from there. Now fly!"

They summoned their dragons and quickly got into position, the oni followed after them, swinging its iron club around like a mad man. It alternated its attention from Lloyd and Nya who shot bursts of energy and water at its face, to Kai and Jay that burned and shocked the oni's legs. As Cole and Zane observed the fight, they noticed how it didn't have any trace of a scratch, let alone a bruise or burn. However, every now and then it would hold the side of its mouth, similar to someone with a toothache.

"Lloyd! Nya!" Zane shouted. "I'm picking up a strange foreign matter in its tooth, strike it there!"

The second they did so, the oni let out a howl of pain and fell to its knees. Everyone just stood still, waiting in anticipation for its next move. Just waiting…and watching…waiting to strike.

 **CRACK!**

In one swift motion, the oni ripped a pine tree from the ground with ease, much like picking a flower. It quickly threw it at the two ninja on dragons who were fast enough to avoid it, but not fast enough to avoid the club's swing at their dragons. Their concentration was broken so suddenly, they didn't react fast enough to create another dragon, and the oni had snatched them in one hand.

" _NO_!" The four remaining ninja screamed.

Fueled with anger, they charged at the beast and threw bursts of earth, fire, ice, and lightning to get it to drop their friends. The oni merely swung his club at them, they were flung back into a thick pine tree and promptly pinned against it by the oni's iron club. They struggled hard and yelled at it to let their friends go, the green ninja and water ninja struggled harder to use their own powers to be dropped.

The oni was just too strong, it could endure everything that was thrown at it. Finally, after playing around with them long enough, it held the two ninja high above its head and revealed its long, purple tongue. In what seemed like their final moments, Lloyd and Nya locked eyes with Kai and let out a heartbreaking scream.

 _"KAI! HELP US!"_

In an instant, time froze for Kai. He was back in the darkness where he had seen that red gem, but it was no where to be found. He kept searching and searching, but he was truly alone this time. Suddenly he felt pain again, and had visions go through his head, specifically ones that filled his head to the brim with anger. Nya's kidnapping, her corruption by the overlord, Zane's death and absence, Skylor's betrayal, Morro's possession over Lloyd, all those memories taunted at him, reminded him how he was weak. He couldn't be weak now, he got his family into this mess and he had to get them out! He wasn't going down now! Not again!

As if his prayers were answered, he saw a red light. He turned and faced the gem once more.

"For my family, I will fight. Because they, give me strength!" He snatched the gem with his hand and started falling.

* * *

Kai opened his eyes once and observed the battle field. He noticed Lloyd and Nya landed safely on the ground and were gathering with the others, the oni was on its knees clutching its mouth with both hands. Only one thing confused him, his team was looking up at him from a great height and as stood as the oni stood up straight, he was face to face with it.

"Hey, Kai," Jay yelled up to him, "how come you get the sweet armor?!"

As soon as Jay yelled that he looked down, and gaped at his new look. He was inside a giant, red shogun armor that was made of a type of energy and stood 18 ft equal to the oni! He wielded a giant sword that glowed with a red aura, he felt powerful but was too shocked to make the first strike. The oni took that first strike with its club, right on his armored head and…

 **CRACK!**

The oni's club snapped in two on contact! Furious, it threw a punch and withdrew it back in pain as it visibly throbbed. Kai took this chance and barred his sword in position, he aimed at its chest and gave out a victory yell.

"For my family, I will be strong!" He pierced it through its chest and it was over.

The beast fell back and started dissolving into black particles that swirled around, gradually dissolving down into the ground until it was no more. The adrenaline rush Kai felt dialed down, his armor shrank down and he was back on the ground with his own feet. His teammates bombarded him and talked at the same time, the poor guy had no idea what happened beforehand, so he kindly got them to slow down.

"Will you guys cool it and tell me how this happened?!"

"We screamed for you to help us!"

"Then you blacked out on me, not really since you kinda went through me and I was focusing on my arms to push the club off us."

"Then the foreign matter I picked up in the oni's mouth shot out from its teeth and onto you!"

They finally stopped for they ran out of breath, it gave Kai a chance to examine himself once more. He found the red gem he envisioned was actually there, right on his left arm in the center of an armlet. The armlet was golden, and had engravings that swirled around and highlighted the gem. He stared at in awe for quite some time as his teammates gave him weird looks.

"Uhh..Kai?" Said ninja faced Lloyd."You wanna show that to Sensei or are you gonna burn a hole through it first?"

"Oh, no. Let's go home, it's almost lunch and it's Zane's turn to cook."

That got everyone going, they summoned their dragons and flew back to the bounty. Kai gave a final look at his new armlet and smiled before he took off.

'Finally, I'm the first at something!'

* * *

As soon as they got back, both groups had something that just had to tell each other. It took a while for them to calm down and share their discoveries with each other. When they were done, they all sat down and tried connecting the dots again.

"So you guys fought an oni that had the gem lodged in its teeth?" Maria asked disgusted. "Which your just wearing and pretending it wasn't in there at all?"

Kai shrugged. "I don't see the problem. I mean c'mon, I got to control a giant shogun armor thing."

"It's still gross."

Sensei stepped forward. "Gross or not, Kai retrieved the gem. It's proof that destiny has brought us together for a reason, from the moment Lloyd and Maria bumped into each other and met."

"That reminds me," Lloyd sat up. "Maria, you said you saw a guy in your vision that looked like me?"

She gave a short nod as she was thinking. "Yeah, I still don't understand why Onryō would send me a vision like that, if it was him. It's like your mom said, he could just be trying to mess with me and get me off guard. I mean, we got one of the seven gems, maybe he knows they're out there and he's trying to confuse us all so he'll snatch them all up."

"Then we must not waste time pupils. Tomorrow Maria, you will learn basic defense moves so you may accompany the others on missions sooner than planned. We must all train harder than we have before, if we lose against this Demon King, life itself may be destroyed forever."

* * *

 **I realize it's late as I finish up this chapter, but I couldn't stop. I just had to get this done today, I felt the adrenaline going! Anyways, please read, review, and share my story to fellow Ninjago fanfic fans.**

 **Until then, God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good.**


	7. 6:Scars Of The Past

**Disclaimer: Sadly, I don't own Ninjago. Just the story idea and the ocs.**

 **Hello everybody! I'm so happy! I got some reviews, some favorites on my story, and I finally got the title cover art done! I hope you guys like it, it's much better than what I originally planned. To be honest, it was really plain at first, but I added some detail to it.**

 **Now on with the show!**

* * *

 **Chapter 6: Scars Of The Past**

After the battle with the oni, the ninja slept sorely and roughly got four hours of sleep. Of all the ninja, Lloyd had the most uncomfortable night due to the cut he had on his back. When Kai had saved him and Nya, he landed on his back on some fallen branches, resulting in a cut that would have everyone babying him. He tried keeping it secret, but failed in trying to find time to clean it alone and unnoticed. Lloyd just suffered through the pain and almost got a perfect four hours when…..

 **BEEP,BEEP,BEEP! BEEP,BEEP,BEEP!**

The fire alarm went off. Normally he would have run and do all the fire safety tips Zane lectured them about in a three hour discussion, but he remembered to first check to see if Cole was cooking breakfast before he called the fire department and the paramedics. He shuffled down the hall half asleep and slid open the dining room door. The second he did so, his stomach turned inside out.

The table was covered with miscolored food that was also either really burnt or really raw. It looked like the work of the ghost ninja all right, until the kitchen door opened.

"Oh, good morning, Lloyd! Glad to see you're up!" Maria called out, while carrying a plate of burnt bacon and pancakes oozing with raw batter and black syrup, pinned down by a fork.

"Maria?! You made all of this….food, I think ?"

"Yeah! Sensei told me we all take turns cooking the meals and today is my turn, but I've never cooked before. So I went to Cole and he gave me his recipe book that he made. It even had a recipe for homemade syrup!" She pulled out the fork that was in the pancakes, cut out a slice and held it up to Lloyd's face. "Here, try some."

"Oh…um…well you see, Maria, I don't really like pancakes," his voice trailed off on that last part as Maria's smile melted into a frown. Her big eyes drooped and started to look moist.

"Then again, it's fun to try something new!" And with that he quickly shoved the food in his mouth and forced a toothy, syrup stained smile on his face, all while trying to keep it from falling into his stomach.

She regained her happy face and turned back to the kitchen to hopefully turn off the fire alarm. Lloyd took the opportunity to spit out the food in a nearby potted plant, at that moment the rest of the team had walked in and got a good look at the scene. They gawked at their leader that leaned over the plant with food residue dripping from his face, finally Cole broke the silence.

"Oh I get it. Maria made some of my recipes, right? Don't worry, buddy, I messed up a little too when I first made some of the stuff in there. It gets better."

"If that is the result of a _little_ mess up," Jay said while pointing at Lloyd, " I'm scared to eat the perfected version of whatever Lloyd ate."

"Well too bad, Maria made breakfast and we're gonna eat whether we like it or not," he commanded as he wiped his face off.

Lloyd's demand got a chorus of groans and looks of fear from the team. He could tell Maria had a bit of a sensitive spot and he didn't want to test it. She was still adjusting to her new life and he'd personally feel guilty if he made her feel more uncomfortable that she probably was. His thoughts stopped as his mom and uncle Wu, who was holding a flat box, walked in.

"Good morning pupils. Do you know where Maria is?"

"Here I am!" She popped her head out of the kitchen door right on cue and came out with plate of dried, yet greasy looking eggs. "Nice to see everyone up. Did you need me Sensei?"

"Yes, I finally finished your welcoming present." He held out the box which she took and excitedly ripped it open. In it was a simple pink gi with purple trim, it had a purple belt and ties around the knees on the pants part of it. It came with a pink hood and a white undershirt. Maria smiled even bigger than before.

"Oh Sensei, thank you! This is so nice, I'll put on before we get training. But, it doesn't have armor like the other gis, (A/N I looked it up,it can be spelled gis) are you sure it'll protect me?"

Zane leaned in and gave the gi a quick scan. "P.I.X.A.L and I can verify that it'll protect you, it's made of a light breathable material that is also fire proof."

"Uh..who's P.I.X.A.L?

"She's my compatible other and the voice inside my head."

Maria just stared and slowly backed away from the nindroid, she was stopped by Nya who got ahold of her arm. After clearing that confusion up, they sat down and ate their "breakfast," with Lloyd being the only one to **actually** swallow down everything that was on his plate.

* * *

The ninja, excluding Lloyd who had to "freshen up" in the bathroom, had just finished their daily exercises. It was no big deal, but Maria on the other hand, the poor girl had never taken part in such a vigorous exercise and currently had her hands on her knees while she took deep, hard breaths. It took her a while to stand up straight and breathe normally.

Kai clasped his hands together. "Okay Maria, ready to get punching and kicking?" She gave a shy nod. "Great! Now first things first, punch me in the gut."

"But I don't wanna hurt you."

He put his hands on his hips. "It'll be fine, I got a six pack under here. It's just a test to see how strong you are already, now hit me with your best shot!"

She wound up a fast punch, and SMACK! Landed it right on his abs and stayed there, she then quickly withdrew it and held it a little with a look of confusion on her face.

"Why couldn't I have just punched a board or something like that?"

"Well if you did that you probably would've broken you-oof!" Jay was cut off as Nya had elbowed him in the gut.

"What he meant is, it's easier to see how strong you are against an opponent by practicing it on a real person," she explained. Nya then stepped forward in front of the pink ninja. "Now kick me in the gut."

This time, she did so without hesitation in a slower fashion, and withdrew it quicker and held it tighter compared to her fist. The others grouped together to discuss as Lloyd, carrying a huge duffel bag, had finally come up on deck and walked towards the group just as it dispersed.

"Based on our observations, it seems your upper body strength and agility compared to your lower body body strength and agility, has our hypothetical ratio proven wrong."

Everyone, except Jay, had a blank stare on their face until he translated. "He means you slug better than you kick, for a beginner."

"OHH!"

"What's in the bag, Green machine?"

"This," Lloyd opened it up and revealed an variety of weapons inside, " is just a little boost to get you on the battlefield faster. We haven't seen a trace of your powers, plus it's uncertain if you can do spinjitzu or airjitzu, or even summon an elemental dragon! But there may be a time when we need you or you'll be forced to defend yourself alone, we have to get you ready for that."

Maria just looked at the ground and spoke softly. "So, you want me to protect myself?"

"Well, I-I didn't mean…"

"OKAY!" she shouted and started rummaging through the bag, pulling out an armful of weapons. "Let's get training!"

* * *

"Lloyd, are you sure we should start her off with _that_ weapon?"

"Yeah, now stop whining and put the apple back on your head!"

For Maria's first choice of a weapon, she picked out an old fashioned bow, and was currently aiming at an apple on Jay's head. It took her while to keep the arrow on the bowstring and pull it back, but she insisted that she had it. Finally, after a tense five minutes for Jay, she let it fly! It was going, going and… she missed. She got the direction right, the problem? It hit the metal part of the mast **above** Jay and ricocheted back toward them. Everyone was quick to duck, except for Sensei Wu who just came up deck for his afternoon tea. It got him right on his hat, his eyes went big as he felt it being ripped off.

"What's the meaning of this?!" he demanded.

"Hey, Lloyd? Maybe we should skip training with the rest of the projectile weapons."

Her second weapon was a whip, it had a similar attacking method to a scythe, so Cole was the lucky contestant to train her. He had his own scythe on hand and began demonstrating on some training dummies.

"Okay Maria, when you're going to attack an enemy you pull back," he demonstrated in an exaggerated way, " and let loose!" He succeeded in getting all the dummies sliced in half.

The rest of the team applauded from behind a wide wooden shield that they constructed from some spare boards in case of an, accident. Cole set up a fresh pair of dummies, then sidestepped to give her room to try. She pulled back, let it loose and…it was gone. Her hand came out empty, they looked over the side and saw the whip falling all the way down. Everyone looked at her and she gave a sheepish smile.

"So…what next?"

As her final choice for the day, hopefully, Maria pulled out a pair of nunchucks. That meant Jay had to teach her how they work, before he started he whispered to Lloyd. "Maybe things are going too fast for her."

"It's fine, I know she's not going to get all of this in one day. We just gotta cover all the areas of fighting and defense at least. Until then we follow Wu's orders, we protect her at all costs."

Unknown to them, Maria had heard their conversation and cringed at that last part. 'No, they can't get hurt because of me! I have to be get this done fast before our next fight!'

Just like that, she started swinging the nunchucks wildly and tried to figure out how they work on her own. Her actions drew the attention of the others and they shouted at her to stop, she kept trying to convince them that she knew what she was doing, only she didn't as they got out of control. They kept spinning and spinning until flew out of her hands and flung behind her. All she heard before she turned was the clatter of them falling and a scream. Maria turned and saw Lloyd on the ground hold his back with one hand, the others gathered around him until he broke the crowd by running down below deck. She put her hands to her mouth and started crying.

'No! This is what I didn't want to happen! I did it again, I hurt my friend again!'

* * *

Lloyd tried hard not to scream all the way to his room, he finally got in, flopped down his bed and screamed in his pillow. He was lucky he avoided the nunchucks, but he had lost his footing and accidentally bumped into the railing behind, right on his cut. He really should have checked it before training, but he didn't have time nor could he find a decent first aid kit without being questioned. He got up and went into his bathroom, took off his gi, and almost fainted at his reflection in the mirror.

His cut had taken an appearance of a bruise, and stung very badly if he tried to touch it or stretch his arm back, in other words it **had** to be infected. Not good. Suddenly there was a knock at the door, a quivering voice called out. " L-Lloyd? Are you ok? I'm so sorry for w-what happened at training."

Maria! This girl had bad timing. He struggled to get his gi back on and lock the door before she came in, all without screaming his heart out. But he was too late, she already barged in with a first aid kit in hand, her face was still wet with tears.

"Lloyd, I'm so sorry! I brought you a first aid in case it's that bad, and I have the paramedics on speed dial in case you have to go to the hospital. I'm willing to wait on you hand and foot since I hurt you in the first place and I'm really sorry and I'm sorry I acted so stupid and careless and-mph!"

"Maria, you worry too much!"

Lloyd had to put a hand over her mouth to get her to stop, she was almost a motormouth like Jay! The poor girl went through all this trouble though to fix something she didn't cause, might as well tell her the truth. He sighed and looked her in the eye.

"Maria, if I tell you the real reason why I'm in pain, will you keep it a secret and calm down a lil?" She gave a short nod with a muffled yes. " Ok, well yesterday with the oni, when Nya and I fell to the ground, I fell on my back in a pile of branches. Now I have a cut on my back that I didn't get a chance to tend to, and I lost my footing when I was avoiding the nunchucks so now it hurts more. It's _my fault_ because _I_ kept this a secret, ok?"

She nodded her head once more and he uncovered her mouth. She stared at him in confusion. "Why didn't you tell anyone? We could have helped you if it's that bad."

"Do you think anyone would _not_ scream if they saw this?" He quickly turned and showed her his scar, when he turned back to face her, she was pale and was likely to faint. Lloyd was not good at handling fainting people, he quickly took her hand and sat her down on his bed next to him, if she did faint then she wouldn't get hurt. He could still feel that stinging sensation when he sat up, if it hurt that much just by doing that, then that left him with only one choice.

"Maria, I need you to help clean my cut."

"WHAT!?"

"I can't reach all of it if I do it myself, plus it stings if I try to move my arms too far back. Just do as I say and it'll be fine."

Reluctantly she opened up the first aid kit and laid out the products inside. She took a shaky deep breath followed by a big gulp. She pulled her hair back with her purple scarf and prepared herself.

"Okay, I'm ready."

* * *

"Ya know, that wasn't as hard as I thought!"

Maria, with Lloyd's instructions, was able to clean the cut and decently bind it up. It took a few tries since she was unsure how to place the band aids, resulting in her fussing over them and ripping them off slowly to readjust them. Lloyd got up and walked to his closet to find another shirt to put on, his gi was kinda tight and he feared it would mess up the bandaging, he _really_ didn't want another readjustment on them. He picked out his classic green shirt, the one that had the hot chocolate stain on it from when he bumped into Maria, and put it on.

"You didn't wash it?"

He turned and smiled at her. "No way! I couldn't. How else am I gonna remember how I met my new friend?"

She laughed at his reference to how she kept weird mementos herself, suddenly she stopped and looked at the ground. She stayed quiet for a while and took a deep breath.

"Lloyd, you're my friend, right? And friends do what's best for their friends but also make each other happy, right?"

He raised an eyebrow. "Yeah, why do you ask?"

"Well…I want you to… I don't want you to protect me! You're just gonna end up hating me because I couldn't stand up for myself!"

"Woah, what?! I'm not gonna hate you, and if not protecting you is what _you_ think is best for you and would make you happy, then I can't promise that! Why are you acting up so much about all this, Maria?"

She clenched her fists and spoke slowly, " Well…everyone casted me out, even the outcasts. Some of the teachers didn't care too much for me either, I only had my mom and finally, one friend my age. She was so bold and brave, she was always there to protect me, so I never fought. One day, some bullies were picking on her and I was watching, I wanted to help but…I couldn't move because I was scared that they would just hurt me again."

She paused after that sentence, then she pointed at a small scar beneath her chin as an example.

"Afterwards she grabbed me and yelled at me ' I don't want to be friends with a selfish coward! I should've dumped you when I first met you!' Then I never saw her again."

Lloyd was on the verge of tears hearing this. He remembered that feeling of being pushed aside by the whole world just because you were different, because you were you, and that wasn't good enough for all those people who just had to say something. She didn't want to be protected because she was convinced that in the end, she wouldn't be brave enough to fend for herself, or anyone she cared for. The poor girl was scarred for life because of how they treated her, and he just knew that she didn't ask for it nor deserve it.

"Maria, I…"

 **SSSSssssSSCCRReeeeEEEECH!**

The loud speaker turned on with a chorus of feedback, Sensei Wu's voice was then heard with an alarming tone.

"Ninja, suit up and prepare for take off! Borg Industries has just been robbed!"

* * *

 **And cut! So I added some more humor along with some backstory in this chapter, plus I have a review question for you guys, what do you think Maria's weapon will be?**

 **Until then, God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good.**


	8. 7:A Reminder Of Love

**Disclaimer: I don't own Ninjago, just the story idea and the ocs.**

 **People! I have returned with an early chapter!I know it's early but I gotta give you guys a heads up how it's almost October and we know what that means! (New episodes of Ninjago!) Well, yes but I meant that we have a hiatus coming up. (Boooooo!) People, please listen. I'm excited for the new episodes too, I heard that in "The Hands Of Time" the overlord and a young Garmadon will make an appearance! (FINALLY!) Most likely it will happen, that information was found by a credible source.**

 **But we got time before the hiatus, so around the time October starts, I'm gonna be posting chapters that might leave you with goosebumps. So when that time comes, prepare to visualize, read, and get some shivers that will crawl up and down your spine. And yes, this is my true nature that emerges from deep within me as the haunted moon starts to rise and the monsters come out to slay! MUHAHAHAHAHA! Hey, where'd everyone go?**

 **Well anyways, let's dive in!**

* * *

 **Chapter 7: A Reminder Of Love**

The ninja were sprinting up the stairs of Borg Industries to the top office, the building was on lockdown, forcing them to kick in doors and climb every staircase. On their flight here, they got details of a successful robbery in broad daylight, what alarmed them even more was that it happened in under 1 minute. There was a perfectly logical reason as to how this happened, they just didn't know yet. Finally they reached the top and kicked in the door. The sight before them was awful, monitor screens were crushed into pieces, wires ripped out and sparked. Cyrus's desk was smashed into pieces and his computer desktops were ripped out and sprawled across the room, and there he laid on the ground unconscious next to a bent wheelchair.

Zane quickly ran over to him and gave him a quick scan. "Very odd, he appears to be suffering from symptoms of a concussion when I scanned his brain. Yet, he has no injuries on him, let alone a wound that would cause him to pass out."

"That is strange," Lloyd responded. "Is that even possible? Well, guess will have to figure it out on our own. Fan out! Look for clues to figure out who was here and why."

They split and struggled to find a starting point, with all the devices that were destroyed that most likely contained hard evidence, it would be difficult to find something to get them on the culprit's trail. They turned over wreckage and swept away glass fragments and came up with nothing. Until…

"Guys! I think you should take a look at this!" The group rushed over to Cole who was holding up a smashed chunk of the desk in front of him. "I think Cyrus used this to defend himself against the thief, thing is though, what is that? He pointed at two holes the size of his hand, that were drilled into the desk perfectly side by side. They kind of looked like…

"Bite marks." Everyone turned to Zane who was still holding the knocked out Cyrus. "They resemble bite marks, the perfect symmetry and the equal depth and size of them can only be that. I find no other logical reason."

"But if they are bite marks," Nya said, " then what made them? They're so big and that can only mean that they were made by a huge monster or something."

He was about to answer when a groan slipped out from Cyrus's mouth, his eyes opened to six familiar faces and one he never saw before. He sat up and held his head as looked around.

"Owww, my head. What the…my office. My research! My blueprints! My wheelchair! It's all been destroyed! When I find the culprit I'll… I'll!-"

"Please sir, you're very weak still. Don't get so worked up and hurt yourself even more." He turned to face the girl in pink.

"Wh-who are you?"

"I'm Maria, the elemental master of spirit." She answered with confidence.

"Don't worry, she not a crazy fan that has an obsession with pretending to be a ninja...again," Jay assured the weak man. "She's with us."

"I see, I'm glad the six..err, I mean the _seven_ of you came to my aid. Can you help me up to my…" He stopped as he looked back at his damaged wheelchair and sighed. "Never mind."

"No sweat, I got this." Cole then proceeded to unbend the wheelchair and got it fixed up to a much better state. Nya and Jay then helped Cyrus back onto his chair, he sat back and sighed once more in contentment.

"Thank you so much, now tell me, what happened here?"

The ninja just shook their heads and sighed, he really was suffering from a concussion. The poor man couldn't remember what happened before, this was going to make things much harder for them, as if it wasn't already. No matter how specific they were with their questions, he couldn't give them an answer. Everything came to a blank, he only remembered that he was working on some inventions as usual and felt sleepy all of a sudden. Also, the only thing stolen was a prototype invention that could transfer energy and create it into a different form of matter such as solids or liquids. It was far from much help, but it was something. Either way they had no other choice but to head back to the bounty. Just who or what would steal something that had no guarantee to work for whatever twisted plan they thought of?

* * *

Three hours. Three hours went by and they had nothing, the information they had about the robbery was too vague and failed to find a candidate who would be stupid enough to steal a machine that blew up ninety percent of the time it was tested, but clever and experienced enough to knock out Borg without laying a finger on him and rob him in under a minute. They sat at the dining room table exhausted and frustrated, Kai was the most frustrated and just slammed his head on the table.

"How?! How can someone pull off a robbery like this?!"

"Will you act your age and stop pouting?" His sister scolded him, "We're all stumped at who did this, but we shouldn't just give up or…do what you're doing."

"Yeah! I'm sure Lloyd's come up with a solution by now since he's a great leader! Right Lloyd?"

He was pulled out of deep thought as Jay called his name desperately, "Huh? Oh, no I haven't. Sorry, but this is hard for me to figure out too. I can't figure out what kind of person is able to pull off a perfect robbery."

"That's the problem, you've been limiting your thinking to a **human** thief." The seven of them turned to Misako,who was holding a scroll, and Sensei. "Have you forgotten how you found Kai's gem?"

"Oh,heck no!" he shouted while sitting up. "We ran into an oni and I connected to the gem that was lodged in its teeth, that's when I summoned a legit giant shogun armor and sent that thing to its grave! And I got this beauty!" He flexed his left arm to show off his armlet and gem, again. He was having too much fun being the first one to get a gem.

The others just stared at him with a weird look on their faces until Cole broke the silence. "Ahem! Soooo, what were you saying, Misako?"

She rolled out the scroll and revealed an image of Seraphina being guarded by her shadowed personal army, they were slightly illuminated by seven gems that matched the dots on the clock, beneath them was an inscription that read 'Conjuncta animae ad animam pertinet.'

"Great work, Misako! Just one thing…"

"You don't know what it means?"

"Yeah." Maria slumped back and puffed her cheeks a little.

"It means 'bonded to the soul, connected to the heart.' The gems were connected to Seraphina's army when they had possession of them, but now they respond to the seven of you. Your souls and hearts call out to them because you share a unknown connection to them, but I can tell it's a connection chosen by destiny in one way or another."

"That is very informative, but I fail to see how this relates to the robbery." Zane replied.

"It has been at least thousands of years since the last time Seraphina and Onryo fought, that was the last time they were seen together. If Seraphina passed on, then most likely her army did too, that would leave the gems unattended and uncared for. It was probably enough to make them find a new host, whether good or bad. Like the oni."

They just stared at her with a blank expression until they processed what she said.

"WHAAAAT?!"

"Mom, are you saying that **anyone** can use them now?"

"That's what she just explained," Sensei answered. "It gives us more reason to find them before they connect themselves to a human or monster with dark intentions. Maybe it could be a person that robbed Borg Industries, but it could also be a creature."

"Well, let's think this over again," Cole said. "Whoever robbed Borg Industries had to be skilled enough _without_ the gem and got a boost from it. But it could've been a monster that's just throwing us off track from our main mission, so who did it?"

Lloyd closed his eyes and thought, 'Skilled and got even better by the help of a gem, but they stole a prototype machine that's probably a few thousands bucks. Wait a minute…"

He stood up and face palmed himself. "I can't believe we've been so stupid. There's only one guy who would steal an expensive machine that doesn't work but make money off of it anyway, _and_ abuse the powers of an incredibly rare object!"

His teammates stood up."WHO?"

"Ronin."

* * *

The team was able to pinpoint Ronin's location, recent activity showed he was traveling around from village to village selling junk or valuable items that he stole. It sounded like him alright. It was surprising though that his next destination was in downtown New Ninjago City, he was taking a big risk setting up shop where he could draw the wrong kind of attention to himself. The team walked down there in disguise and planned for the worst.

"So who's this Ronin guy again?" Maria cocked her head.

"A thief and our friend, but kind of a lousy one since he always wants something in return. Even if it's an emergency!" Jay said as dramatically gestured with his arms. "This is going to very difficult."

"Not this time," Lloyd smirked. "I got a full proof plan. If we show him how important the machine and the gem is, then he's going to charge us **a lot.** We just have to act curious and pretend we're not interested, then we can get them for cheap or free and all's well that ends…ugh."

The leader had stopped and held his head;he felt so light headed and dizzy, it didn't hurt but it made it difficult to concentrate. His team swarmed him and questioned what was going on.

"What's wrong with you?!"

"Is it the gem?"

"Where is it?!"

"What do you see?"

"Is your head gonna explode?!"

"Lloyd, listen to me. Don't loose that feeling, reach out to it and it'll come to you."

He breathing got short and had sweat droplets form on his forehead, finally he stood up with a slight wobble, "I'm fine, just keep going we're almost there." Even after his reassurance, Kai carried him on his back and Maria took off his hat and started fanning him. His whole team kept a close eye on him as they got closer to the destination.

"Hey," Kai whispered to him, " I know it hurts, I haven't forgotten that feeling when it happened to me. But now we're more prepared this time, don't push us away."

"Yeah, friends do what's best for their friends and try to make them happy, remember?" Lloyd mustered up a weak smile at the pink and red ninja, he closed his eyes and rested his head peacefully. He slipped into the darkness and felt waves of calmness, soon enough he was sleeping. It was so quiet, not a sound was heard as he fell deeper and deeper into his…

" _I'm here."_

"Who said that?" He opened his eyes and found himself searching in the darkness for that echoing sound.

" _Always remember that I'm here."_

"Where? Where are you?" His question was answered as a dim green glow pierced the darkness, there it was, his gem. Just like Kai had felt, Lloyd knew that it belonged to him, he started to reach out to it and almost had it when, he stopped. He felt light headed again and started to…remember something.

He remembered that someone important to him gave him this gem. Someone who watched over him, she gave it to him as a reminder that she was with him always. He remembered that she loved him very much and sacrificed so much to prove that to him, she showed him love that he returned.

" _Always remember that I'm here. Promise me that you'll remember that. Promise me, Oliver."_

They were so close, it was always the two of them, everything was peaceful until..

 _"Look at what I've got, Seraphina."_

 _"Help me!"_

 _"Onryō, no! Please stop, end this war and spare him!_

 _"Why do you care?! He's not your son! You have a castle full of those filthy hybrids, pick one out and call it your child! The boy is mine!"_

 _"Seraphina! Save me!"_

"Lloyd, wake up!"

He shot open his eyes and found Maria nudging him awake, he yawned out, "What's wrong?"

She pointed above them to a sign that was hanging over a cheap raggedy tent and read:

' **Ronin's Traveling Pawn Shop. It's a steal!'**

"Are you feeling better, buddy?" Kai asked him as he hopped off his back.

Lloyd just walked past them all with a determined look on his face. "Fine, now let's get my gem back."

* * *

 **That's a wrap people! So Ronin's in the story, I gotta admit he's awesome, I just had to put him in. Plus we are getting to the second gem, prepare yourselves for the next chapter. By the way, the language I've been using is Latin in case you were wondering, it sounds magical to me.**

 **Until next time, God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good.**


	9. 8:Howls Of The Hibagon (Part 1)

**Disclaimer: I don't own Ninjago, just the story idea and the ocs.**

 **Good evening readers, though it may not be evening when you read this, the point still stands. As you all know something exciting is happening this October.(New Ninjago episodes!) Yesssss, wait no! I'm referring to the Halloween themed chapters that I'm going to be posting! Ahem, anyway, these chapters will give you a fright, goosebumps, chills that will wake you up in the middle of the night and make you sleep with the lights on! AHAHAHAHA! Hey where you guys going? For those of you that stayed, like I said the chapters will be made in the SPIRIT of Halloween. Get it? Spirit? Halloween? Wait please don't leave I'll stop. Oh let's just do this.**

 **ROLL IT!**

* * *

 **Chapter 8: Howls Of The Hibagon (Part 1)**

The seven teens had to squeeze themselves inside, the whole place was stuffed with junk that was unidentifiable, did Ronin understand the concept of organization at all? Boxes and tables overflowed with all sorts of stuff, it was very dark and had very little light peek into the holes of the tent, it reeked of a dead fish smell all around. They heard a whistle and turned to the source, Ronin had walked into view counting a handful of dollar bills.

"Man, I can't believe that old geezer believed that an old blender wrapped in tinfoil was an advanced hair dryer. Heh, there's a sucker born every min-OH!"He nearly dropped his money at the sight of the ninja, but was relieved when he recognized them.

"Oh, it's you guys! Nice to see you." He stopped and pointed at Maria in the back. "Who's the girl with the hairspray malfunction?"

"What?! I'll have you know sir, that this hair is natural!"

He scoffed, "Maybe for a poodle."

Nya held her back from taking a punch at him, sure Ronin could be a jerk but this was too far, even for him. "Why are you so snappy? We thought you were happy to see us."

"I was, but knowing you guys you probably think I'm up to no good." He got on his knees and placed his hands behind his head dramatically, "Well, you got me, might as well give up. I can't try and escape the famous ninja of Ninjago, it's impossible. Go ahead and cuff me, maybe if I'm lucky I'll get the first cell I've ever had. I just hope they didn't fill in my favorite escape hole."

Lloyd grabbed his arm and yanked him up. "We're not taking you in, we heard you were around and we're interested in buying something from you."

"Really?" They all shook their heads. "OKAY! Well look around, we got a ton of stuff that you'd be interested in. We're also having a sale, everything is so cheap, why it's a steal!" They dispersed and carefully looked everywhere and at everything without looking too suspicious, no sign of a gem or a machine yet.

While Kai was reaching towards some baskets that were pinned to the top of the tent, a small ray of light bounced off his gem and blinded Ronin for a split second. It was enough to get his attention and gawk at the fine jewelry on his arm;he had to get it off him! He slid over and put his slick charms on him.

"That's a fine piece of jewelry you're packing, hothead."

Kai glanced at his arm and quickly covered it up. "I-It's not real, it's just a-a plastic band and some glass. I thought it would cool on me, that's all."

"Well, alright. But if it was real, then I could trade you for one of my most valuable finds that I've ever come across." That got his attention. Before he could answer, Ronin pulled out a small velvet box from inside a hollowed out, rusted toaster. Everyone gathered around and gasped as he unveiled a small green gem inside.

"I found it in the hands of a hobo and bought it for $3. Now that was a steal. This little guy is probably a rare stone or something, I mean look at that color! That sparkle! I thought it was an inexpensive one of a kind find, until I saw the gem in that golden armlet of yours."

They cringed when he mentioned that, if he had his eye on the armlet, then that's all he was gonna accept to trade them for this gem. But they had a plan, and they were sticking to it!

"Oh please! I've seen a gem like that before, I had to eat twelve boxes of cereal before I got it," Lloyd scoffed, the others quickly followed suit. Some better at acting unimpressed. Others...not so much.

"Uh..yeah! Uhh yeah! It's probably just a…a…marble! Yeah let's go with that!"

"Or maybe it's actually a glass eye he stole off his grandma…and then painted it!"

"I think it's an earring he stole from his ex girlfriend!"

"Oh, please, Zane, you think Ronin is capable of having a real girlfriend?"

"Jay's right, it's probably just a stolen bouncy ball from a little kid. Oh and then! Then he ran away in terror when the mom came charging after him!"

"Maybe it's a grape that he fancied up with some glue and glitter!"

 _"SHUT IT!"_ He's eye was twitching like mad the whole conversation and looked like he was gonna pop a vein, he huffed deeply through his nose. "First of all, NEVER bring Granny Ronin into a business conversation AGAIN. Second, it was one date and she stood me up. I only robbed her house and took her tv! Third, I can prove this gem's worth something. But if you want it, fork over 300 and then take a good look."

All together they had only 200 on hand and planned to spend it on the gem and the machine, but it was debatable if Ronin could manage to hide a huge machine in this wreck. More importantly they had to get the gem, fortunately the plan was working pretty well so far, it just needed a little push. Lloyd got in his face. "230, I'm not convinced that this is real."

"290."

"220."

"280!"

"200, that's my final offer Ronin."

"Fine! Just take it and hand over the money!" Lloyd did as he was asked and had the bills ripped out of his hand, with the velvet box now taking up the empty space in his hand. "Pleasure doing business with you, now get out."

They filed out of the tent slowly but surely, when they got out into the clean air and the light again, the team begged Lloyd to try out the gem to see what it could do. He wouldn't budge even a little bit, he knew if Ronin noticed what this gem really was, it'd just be another hassle that would've cost an arm and a leg. But for now, he got what he felt had belonged to him long ago, it brought a smile to his face as he held it close. They continued to walk back to the bounty, unaware of the glowing green eyes that stared them down from the giant shadows of the buildings.

* * *

Lloyd punched furiously at a punching bag in the training area below deck, it was late at night and everyone had gone to sleep. Except Lloyd. Now that he had a gem with him, he knew he had to guard it with his life. He finally took a breather and walked over to his water bottle on the ground that sat with the box and his phone, taking a sip of the ice cold water, he let out a breath in pure peace. He glanced back at the small box, picked it up, and opened it up to stare at the gem.

"Are you gonna try it on?" He whipped around to face Kai with a smirk on his face. "I kinda wanna see what power it'll give you."

"Of course you do, everyone's been nagging me to use its power. Couldn't you have done this in the morning when I'm well rested? I don't want your whining to be the last thing I hear before I go to sleep."

"Actually since we both have gems now, I wanted to show you a neat trick I learned on my own." He showed him his gem. "Now I've been wearing this thing ever since I got it; I haven't taken it off at all. Not even when I got dressed or when I showered."

"First, gross. And second, how'd you keep it on you all this time?"

"Uhhh…we're getting off topic here. Anyways, I was gonna take it off tonight and polish it when this happened." He slid off his armlet and held it in his hand, it just sat there which gained a look from Lloyd. Suddenly it glowed gently with a ruby red color, it then sucked the armlet into itself until it was a simple round gem again. Lloyd had his mouth open in shock and tried speaking when Kai stopped him, he held it to where it rested on his arm to have it glow and grow the armlet bands around his arm.

He held up his arm and showed his gem to the leader in awe. "So, what do you think?"

"That. Was. Amazing! Can it only form an armlet?"

"Yeah and it'll only react to my left arm which is weird, but it's still legit! Maybe yours can do the same thing! You have to try!"

"Yeah!" He quickly pulled out his gem and held it where he thought it would react, nothing had happened yet until he reached his neck. It glowed gently like Kai's but with a soft green tone, he felt something wrap around his neck and looked down at his gem. It became the center of a simple silver choker that wrapped around it, it had two little vines wrap around the bottom and top of it gently. He pulled out his phone and admired his reflection.

"Yeah, this is sweet. Now I'm curious about what it can do. So how do you unlock its pow-" He stopped as a deep howl pierced the night's silence, he could feel shivers it gave off creep up his spine. Both ninja looked at the other, searching for an answer.

"What was that?"

"Uhh..a wolf?"

"Kai, we're in the city. I doubt there's a wolf close enough for us to hear it howling."

"Maybe we should go check it out then?"

"Ya think?!" They ran out to the top deck and split to the different sides of the railings, nothing was seen for even in the bright, big city of lights, darkness would come eventually and bring the children of the night with it. "Do you see anything on your side?" The green ninja called over.

"Nope, it's hard to tell with all the lights off. Maybe it was the wind?"

"It can't be, the weather said it wasn't gonna get windy until next week. Maybe we should tell Sensei, let's head back in for now." The two of them walked back as a soft howl pierced the silence, it evolved into a deep groan from right behind them. They whipped around, fists aglow with fire and energy to face whatever came to pick a fight, but there was nothing and silence was once more. They exchanged looks and chuckled amongst themselves.

"I think we've stayed up a little too late. C'mon, Kai let's head ba- _MMMM_!" Just like that Lloyd had a giant, hairy hand scoop him up and muffled up his surprised scream he tried to give off! He couldn't move and struggled to breathe, in a split second Kai was also captured by what was connected to these hands. The hands then turned to their owner and displayed the ninja it had captured, there in the shadow of the night, a pair of green eyes faintly highlighted a hairy face.

They could not see much more of the beast, for they had passed out from the lack of air and admitted defeat. The beast held them together in one hand and swung off into the night, jumping from rooftop to rooftop, it took the wind with it as it swung its big arms to move farther away from the bounty. Soon enough the beast had successfully made it past the city limits, it held up its arms in victory and let out a howl as it ran back home.

* * *

"Nya! Maria! Open up, it's an emergency!"

Both girls walked to the door and yanked it open, resulting in the blue ninja that was pounding on the door to fall flat on his face. Behind him standing in the doorway was Cole and Zane, suited up and ready to take off. The two girls had finally woken up after that chaos and were down right confused.

"Guys, what are you doing? What's going on?" Maria questioned while pulling Jay off the ground. He immediately started running his mouth off.

"We went to wake up Kai since he tries to sleep in sometimes and Sensei would pin the blame on us since we are one because we're a team so we went to his room but he wasn't there so we went to ask Lloyd if he's seen him but he wasn't there and we decided to suit up and head out but we forgot to wake you two up and I wouldn't have been pounding because Zane said it was rude to barge into lady's room so I pounded and then you guys opened the door and I fell." He finally paused and took a deep breath in and gently let it out. "To sum it all up, _LLOYD AND KAI ARE MISSING!"_

"What?!" the girls screamed in unison. Nya turned to the other two. "You guys checked everywhere and couldn't find them?" They only nodded which gave them nerve wracking thoughts. They were gone! Maria then stepped forward.

"Did you call them or try to track them down or something?"

"I'm sorry, but we haven't seen a trace of them at all, my falcon is out searching for them and has found nothing." The Pink Ninja covered her mouth with her hands, they were gone, what if..it was forever? She was gonna explode until Cole spoke up.

"It's okay, you guys suit up and meet us on deck. We have a good idea on who can help us, I'm sure they know where Kai and Lloyd are better than you might think." The boys ran to alert Sensei, leaving the girls alone, Nya then stepped out and called after them.

"Are you sure this guy will help us?" She got a call back from Cole.

"Why wouldn't he? We payed him $200 yesterday!"

* * *

The remaining ninja had gone to the city early before anyone was out on the streets, they were standing in front of the raggedy tent, up where it advertised Ronin's pawn shop was a new sign that read,

 ** _Closed. Gone hunting._**

"Closed? But we're very far from any hunting areas," Cole said, "did he know we were coming?"

"I don't care, he took my brother because he wanted his gem! Now he's gonna pay!" With that Nya used her powers to create a thick stream of water and soaked it to the core, it came crumbling down by the water's weight, the ninja were quick to move as it crashed. Nothing was left but some of the goods Ronin was selling, and a wet rag over a lump that moved furiously. Out popped a wet Ronin, with a bow and net on his back, ripping away the wet tent. He glanced around and got the ninja in his sight, his face turned red and his eye twitched.

" _YOU_. What did you do to my shop?!"

"That's enough out of you, Ronin! Give us back our friend and my brother!"

"What're you talking about?" He was purely confused, "Can't you read the sign? I was going hibagon hunting, until you soaked me to the bone. That tent…" he gestured to the mess around him, "was gonna last me for 6 more weeks, and all my stolen goods could've made me rich!"

They all cocked their heads. "Hibagon hunting?"

"Yeah, _the_ Hibagon. Ya know, the giant beast that's like a giant gorilla and has luxurious fur that costs at least a million bucks? It's an old legend, it's said to be dangerous but is the jewel of every hunter's eye. I heard it howling last night and made plans to go hunting for it first thing in the morning."

The Ninja now had a worried face and quickly huddled together. "Guys, he said it's a beast from legend. Do you think it took Lloyd and Kai?" Maria asked with a shaky pitch.

"By my observations it's a high possibility. Such creatures of mythology indeed exist since our encounter with the oni."

"Plus we know that anything can take over the gems. Maybe it kidnapped them because of that?"

"But how did we not hear it? Most likely it came onto the bounty and took them, either way I want my brother back. And if that means we need Ronin's help, than so be it!"

"Nya, you know it's not easy. He's gonna want something in return, but we don't have cash on hand or anything he'd want and we're wasting time! Why does everything have to be so difficult?! And why did Ronin have to be such a royal pain?!"

Something clicked in Cole's mind. "I got a plan, it's risky but it might work. Follow my lead." He immediately grabbed Maria's wrist and led her to Ronin, who was salvaging what he could for his hunt. His face turned sour when he saw Cole and Maria approach him. "What do you want?"

"We want you to take us with you. Lloyd and Kai were kidnapped by the Hibagon and we need to get them back."

"Well, I'd love to help you, but the thing is, this is a once in a lifetime opportunity. Not only will you have to pay me for the ride, but if we're too busy finding your friends, I might miss out on getting the Hibagon. That brings you up to the grand total of a lot."

"Well I know just how to pay you." He pulled Maria in front of him, "Maria here, is a princess and can give you a royal rank."

"WHAT?!"

"Really?"

"I what now?!"

"Shhh! Play along, this is the quickest way to find the Hibagon and save Lloyd and Kai!" He whispered to her. "That's right, she's royalty! A spirit princess! If you help us, she'll give you knighthood or any other royal rank you want." He then nudged her to say something.

"Uhh, yes! I, uhhh…Princess Maria, will grant you a royal rank if you help us. Because I'm a princess and princesses can do that and…other princessy things." She forced a smile on her face and hoped she convinced him. He rubbed his stubbly chin at the offer and gave an audible "hmm" as he did so. He stopped suddenly and whistled for R.E.X.

It flew from high in the sky, hidden behind billboards, and made its way next to Ronin for takeoff. He turned to them as he took a step inside, the ninja took this as a yes and ran towards him, only to be denied.

"Hey! Are you people crazy?! You're not getting in here!" They all hung their heads down in defeat, until he offered a hand and a smile to Maria.

"Not until the princess here gets in safely."

* * *

'Where am I? Ugh, my head is killing me.' Lloyd sat up and looked around, glossy leaves and tall trees were all around, the sounds of bugs and birds echoed throughout the rainforest. No doubt he was in Hiroshi's Labyrinth, he could recognize it by the endless view of similar scenery that made it such a hard maze. He heard a groan and looked beside him, sure enough Kai was next to him sleeping, he started shaking him awake.

"Kai? Wake up we gotta get out of here." In response he got swatted at.

"Uggh..stupid alarm clock! Why do you have to be so annoying and ruin my sleeeep?!"

"Kai, wake up! It's Lloyd!" Finally the red ninja opened his eyes, he sat up and yawned.

"Hey Lloyd, what's for breakfa-woah!" He had gotten a good look at where he was, "What happened? Where are we?"

"Hiroshi's Labyrinth. I think what we saw and heard last night brought us here, I don't know why but we got to leave before it comes back." He formed a ball of energy in his hands and summoned his dragon, Kai quickly followed suit and soon they took off.

They flew high above the trees, trying to find where home was, in the end they chose to go south and flew far from the labyrinth. They could feel home was close, then out of the corner of Lloyd's eye, he swear he saw something fly up, he was right as a tree came crashing down on top of them. They were slow to dodge it and were pulled down, however they got caught in the branches of surrounding trees and were unharmed. A deep howl formed below, into view came the hibagon, 16 feet tall with a silky black coat and matching white feet and hands.

It started pounding on the tree they were in as if it wanted them to come down, when they stayed put it started climbing up, they tried climbing higher and jumped to other trees, but it was too fast and would throw branches at them it they tried to fly away. Enough was enough, they had only one option, to fight.

As they continued to jump from branch to branch, Lloyd called over, "Kai! Your armor! Summon your armor! It should be stronger than that thing!"

"I don't know how!"

"WHAT?! You mean you don't know how to use that thing!? Have you even practiced with it?!"

"I thought it would just happen when I'm in danger! I've only had it for two days now, I'm not an expert on it!"

"Just think and try to recreate what happened when you first got it!"

Kai stopped, closed his eyes and focused. 'I was angry before I got the armor, is that it? Do I have to be angry? But I don't have time to be figuring it out right now, our lives at stake! Why can't anything be simple and just work?! I just want to be there for Lloyd, Nya, Jay, Cole, Zane, and Maria! I have to protect my family, is that so much to ask?!"

"Kai, you did it!"

He opened his eyes, sure enough his armor and sword was out and ready. He was standing on top of a now crushed branch with Lloyd, who hopped on, next to him on his shoulder. The hibagon finally caught up to them and looked up the shogun before him, it started punching at it furiously but couldn't make a dent.

"What're you doing, Kai? Finish it before he tries to pull something!"

Kai raised his sword high above their heads, and brought it down with a CLANG! The beast had caught it between his hands! Both struggled but Kai couldn't get it to let go, before he realized, it started pointing the sword towards the center of the armor and forced it through.

A loud crack of glass was heard and the armor shattered! Kai had been knocked unconscious and Lloyd fell with him and tried catching him midair, they tumbled down branches and vines, and finally hit the ground hard. Lloyd shook Kai furiously to wake him up but nothing would do, he heard the slow, thundering footsteps of the hibagon creep toward him. He turned at tried running with Kai but had got his foot caught in a thick vine, as he struggled to get it off, the beast raised its hand into a one huge fist and gave out a warning howl. Lloyd watched as the shadow fell closer upon them, he did the only thing he could do.

"HELP ME!"

 ** _BOOM!_**

* * *

 **Oh my, it seems we have a cliff hanger of our first two parter. I hope you enjoyed this first part, please invite others to our special event of Halloween inspired chapters, everyone needs a good chill now and then. A question for all of you victims, I mean readers, what are you going to be for Halloween? Please review and tell me how you feel about the story so far.**

 **Until next time, God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good.**


	10. 9:Howls Of The Hibagon (Part 2)

**Disclaimer: I don't own Ninjago sadly, just the story idea and the ocs.**

 **So, you're back for more. How sweet. You dear reader are lucky I'm not forcing you to wait a whole week for this chapter, you are especially lucky if you are the lovely Ms. Ebony Umbreon. She has been a great reviewer, I only wish there would be more like her, reviewing my chapters. It would be a shame if you wouldn't yet you read my story, I might get very upset soon. AHAHAAHA! (Hacking cough after laughing too hard) Sorry bout that, but please review, it would be helpful. I know people are busy or don't have anything to say but if I get 60 views on my latest chapter and get only ONE review from the same person, then something's not right. Especially if I put in a review question for fun and to hear others opinions and answers.**

 **Also have you guys seen the latest trailer for Ninjago Day of the Departed!? I was fangirling so hard I almost passed out for the second time in my life! The first was for the first trailer, but Morro and Chen and all those classic bad guys are coming and I'm pumped! I'll try not to mess up the plot by adding Maria in, but I'll work her in and give you guys something that'll get you excited for after the day of the departed chapters. A little arc I guess you can say.**

 **Now let's go!**

* * *

 **Chapter 9: Howls Of The Hibagon (Part 2)**

" **HELP ME!"**

 **BOOM!**

Lloyd had Kai close to him in their final moments as brothers, he could already feel himself going up to a better place. It felt…furry? He opened his eyes and was high above the ground, but he wasn't hurt. He could feel soft fur around him, he turned to faced the beast that had them in its hand, it had then started poking at Lloyd's leg. The vine was still wrapped around his leg but it wasn't as bad, when he got scooped up, it broke off and was loosened. The hibagon was trying to pull the rest off him gently, when he finished he looked back at the two and smiled.

Kai started waking up and screamed when he saw how close they were to the Hibagon, he almost got his armor back in action when Lloyd stopped him.

"Kai, no! I don't think he wants to hurt us."

"Are you crazy?! He kidnapped us, started chasing us, he fought me and broke my armor, and now that he's holding us and smiling, I got a feeling that he wants to EAT US!"

"Well...he's probably trying to tell us something, and he fought us because we were gonna kill him. Maybe it's an emergency and he really needs us." True that this thing did all of that, but it still had a right to explain its actions. He stood up and looked it in the eye. "Why are you doing this? Why did you bring us here?"

As if it understood him, he placed both of them on his shoulders to sit. It looked around for a second and then turned to the right, soon it took off! Running through all the leaves and vines to where it wanted to take them, Lloyd and Kai had to clamp onto his fur to keep from falling off. Through the rush of the wind pushing them back, Kai called over to Lloyd as they got deeper into the labyrinth.

"If we die, I want my grave next to yours with a headstone that points at you and says 'I told you so!'"

* * *

"Okay people, we're here! Hiroshi's Labyrinth!"

Ronin parked R.E.X. behind some fallen trees for protection, everyone scrambled to get out for their own reasons, mostly to breathe real air again. They were crammed in together for four hours and they were sick of having to hear Ronin's honorable stories to boost his chances of getting a high ranking from Maria, listening to Jay repeat that he had to use the bathroom, and they were SICK of smelling rotten fish and being poked at by Ronin's hunting gear! They could've ridden on their dragons, but noooo. Ronin wanted them to stay together for safety reasons.

They got a good look at where they landed, Ronin had said that the Hibagon would be here for cover, but most of the trees here were knocked down and crushed. They couldn't tell if that was a good sign or a bad one. Ronin called everyone to group together, he pulled out a map and compass to pinpoint the Hibagon.

"Now, we're here far from the center of the labyrinth. If anything is gonna survive in this place, they'll need quality food and water which can be found at the center." He started drawing an imaginary line west. "If we go this way west, then we'll get faster compared to any other route."

They started cheering, they were on their way. Zane's voice cut through the cheers. "But how long will it take us to get there?"

"Three hours on foot."

"Well, then we'll fly, that should shave off the time." They started summoning their dragons, with the exception of Maria who was prepared to jump on with Nya, this time Ronin interrupted them.

"Hold it! We are not flying! Why'd you think I parked R.E.X. so far away!? That thing is very territorial. If it hears or sees _anything_ coming towards it by air, it's just gonna run away or chuck stuff at us. How helpful are you guys gonna be if that happens?"

They gave it a good moment of thought and stopped the summoning. Lloyd and Kai were at risk as well as themselves, they weren't gonna make it worse.

"Glad to see you made the right choice. Now then.." He reached into R.E.X. and carefully took out **all** of his gear. He then held it up and dumped it at their feet, "you guys carry that stuff and we can be on our way."

Begrudgingly they divided the load and started walking, it was reasonably easy until they had to go over tree stumps. It would either get caught or cause them to loose their balance and fall, but not for Ronin, he only had the bow and net that made him confident of his capture of the hibagon. This was not their day, but they had be strong for Lloyd and Kai, so they kept going.

Ronin had gotten some distance between them after a while, giving them a chance to whisper amongst themselves.

"Cole, wouldn't you like to explain why you told Ronin that Maria is royalty?!" Jay hissed at him.

"Well, technically she is since she's the reincarnation of a queen. Plus if he thinks that Maria can 'grant him knighthood' or something, then we're not gonna have any more problems when we have to strike a deal with him."

"But based on my knowledge, monarchies pass down titles through blood relation or bestowal. Therefore, Maria technically doesn't qualify and doesn't have the ability to bestow him a nobility title."

"Listen to the nindroid, Cole, I'm lying like a dog for Lloyd and Kai, and that's the problem! If he finds out he's gonna ditch us or worse, and we're gonna have to fend for ourselves if we come across the Hibagon!"

"She's right, my brother is in this jungle with a beast. I can't loose him, and we can't loose Lloyd either, we're not supposed to be separated. We're not a team, we're a family."

Cole gave a deep breathe in and out as he thought this out, Ronin might eventually find out and get revenge on them. But they didn't think of a backup in case this happened, they were steering blind and had ignored all the threats. But he knew as long as they could remember this was for Lloyd and Kai, they'd be fine and nothing could go wrong, right?

"Everyone, look up! My falcon is back!"

They stopped as the titanium bird flew down and onto Zane's arm, it squawked at him in distress and flapped its wings wildly.

"Aww, what's the matter with the little guy?" Maria petted its head in comfort, it had little effect and almost pecked at her out of annoyance.

"I can't tell, it seems very upset about what it's possibly found pertaining Lloyd and Kai."

"Well, do something about it before I dismantle and sell it as scrap!" Ronin snapped.

Zane opened his control panel and then the falcon's, he pulled out a wire from him and connected the bird to him. "P.I.X.A.L, scan memory card data on the falcon from the last 24 hours."

There was a moment of silence as they waited for something to help them find their friends. Finally Zane spoke up, "My falcon has a sound recording of Lloyd! I can play it but it's very quiet and short, pay close attention."

They leaned in as Zane produce the sounds from the data, it started off with a faint booming sound of something running, something BIG. It then turned into a chorus of shattering glass, followed by a faint moan. Finally they heard the voice of one of their friends, and then instantly regretted it as it played.

" **HELP ME!"**

 **BOOM!**

The recording stopped and they just looked at another, they breathed hard as they took in what they just heard. Nya then broke down crying with Maria by her, hugging her for support for the both of them. Ronin took off his hat in respect, the others just looked down and tried to hold the tears in. They were gone, what reason did they have now to continue on?

* * *

They had to be miles from the center of the labyrinth which would have taken them an hour or so to get there, but the beast was able to get them there in 30 minutes. It came to a sudden stop and Lloyd and Kai were almost sent flying, he picked them off his shoulders and placed them down gently. It started howling at them once more in a more exaggerated way with big movements, as though it tried to speak and form words that they could understand.

"Well, Lloyd, **you** had the idea that it brought us here for a reason. So what's that thing saying?"

He cracked a smile at Kai. " I don't know, it's been a while since I spoke with a monster." He only got a glare in return. "Okay okay, I'll try communicating with him. Oh, and no matter what, don't summon your armor. We shouldn't come off as a threat, we're kinda on thin ice with this big guy."

He turned toward the Hibagon and tried understanding what it was get at, there was a pattern to how it howled and moved. It would point up and give off a series of higher pitched howls, then it wiped its forehead followed by short deep howls, finally it would point at them and give one long howl. It would just repeat that over and over, but what did it mean? Eventually it gave up and started climbing up a tree, leaving the two ninja on the ground.

"So, it kidnapped us so we could watch it climb trees...glad we could help it." Kai turned to leave, but Lloyd grabbed ahold of his collar while he continued to watch it climb.

"I think there's something up there and it wants us to do something about it."

"Well I'm not gonna wait forever for that thing. It's just gonna end up forgetting about us so let's head-" He got cut off as the Hibagon bounced down from the tree and back on the ground, it walked toward them and revealed four little puff balls in its arms. They leaned in to get a better look only to see eye to eye with a little pair of green eyes, three more pairs popped out at them, they were connected to smaller, fuzzy versions of the hibagon.

Three of them crawled out from their father's grasp and examined the strangers, they crawled towards them and decided they were harmless, pretty soon they started climbing on them. Two of them ganged up on Kai and played with his spiky hair, the other one climbed on Lloyd's back and sniffed the back of his neck. He was laughing as the fuzzy fur of the baby tickled him as it moved, Kai on the other hand wasn't too pleased in his situation.

"Oh lighten up Kai, these little guys are adorable!"

"Sure they look cute, but they get really annoying. You'd know if they were trying to rip out your hair and smother you until you get light headed."

Lloyd just laughed at his annoyance, he then realized one of the babies was still buried deep in the father's arms. He walked towards it only to have it bury itself deeper into the fur, it gave out a whimper and visibly shook in fear. This one looked different, its eyes were tired and it would pant like it was struggling to breathe. He gently picked it up to get a better look at what was wrong with it. It gently squirmed in protest but immediately gave up when it was set on the ground, however it still hid behind its hands when Lloyd kneeled to eye level with it.

"Come on out you little fuzz ball," he coaxed. "I won't hurt you. I wanna help you, do you think you could tell me what's wrong with you?"

It timidly peeked out from its hands and started giving short gasps. Then it started sneezing and coughing, like it was sick.

'It's sick?' He thought, 'The father wiped his head, it's sneezing and coughing, so I guess it brought me and Kai here because..'

"Kai!" Lloyd shot up and turned towards the red ninja who had all three hibagon babies on him.

"What?" he muffled out.

"This little guy here is sick, he's sneezing and coughing. It could be a high fever."

He tried prying the babies off him but they kept climbing back on, "So? It's probably…got allergies, just because…it's sneezing…doesn't mean it's..actually sick."

"But their dad brought us here for a _reason_ , if he didn't need us then we wouldn't be here, now would we?" Lloyd put his hands on his hips and shot Kai a glare, it took a second but he was on board.

"Oh fine! So what are we gonna do about it?"

"Well, what did your parents do when you had a fever?"

He gave it a moment of thought as he finally got all the young hibagons off him, a lot of the methods that were used on him would be hard to apply here in the wild. He glanced at the waterfall as it streamed down and got an idea. He ran towards the lake with his fists on fire and sunk them in, soon the water slightly bubbled to show it got hotter.

"Bring him over Lloyd!" Said ninja had the sick baby in his arms and walked over, Kai took him and held onto him as he placed him in the water. "This should help, my mom would give me a nice, warm soak in the tub when I had a fever. It should work for him."

"Hang on, Sensei was telling me once on how different medicinal plants grow here in southwestern Ninjago. Some of them can be used for fevers and be made into tea. You stay here, I'll go look for some."

He darted off and soon vanished from sight. As he headed deeper in the jungle, he wondered why his friends hadn't come for them. Had they forgotten or not realized that they were missing? He slowed down at this thought. Maybe Kai and him were alone out here and would have to get back home themselves, but was it even worth it if they forgotten them? Even if he was with Kai, maybe he was on his own, alone.

* * *

Lloyd had sprinted back to the Jewel of the Labyrinth as fast as he could. Just as Sensei had told him, he found bushes of calendula and had his arms full of them. The petals would be perfect for helping that high fever the baby had, he even managed to find a leaf thick enough to be made into a cup. He breathed hard as the Jewel could be seen, and he ran even faster.

Lloyd finally made it back and slowed down, as he caught his he called out, "Kai! I found some flowers that'll help! It's gonna be okay!"

Kai was currently drying off the sick hibagon with the warmth of his fire. He turned in relief at the sound of his friend' voice. "Well come on! We gotta get going, everyone's probably worried sick about us."

Lloyd set down the supplies and got to work. First he molded the leaf into a cup shape and tied it up with some nearby vines. Then he scooped out some leftover warm water, and started crushing the petals into the tea. It was done. He pulled in the little hibagon and offered the tea to it, it was a little unsure at first and took a little sip. Followed by another and another until it had inhaled it all, it let out a yawn and started snuggling into Lloyd's chest.

He couldn't help but give out an, "aww." But he had to cut it short when the father hovered over the scene, he quickly took back his child and cradled it to sleep. The rest of its kids squirmed into its arms for attention and started sleeping too.

Lloyd heard a sniffle behind him and faced Kai, who sure enough was trying to wipe away tears from his eyes.

"Are you crying?"

"Maybe, a little bit." Kai quivered out, "It's just so beautiful."

"I thought you hated them because they were annoying." Lloyd replied with a grin.

"Well, it really makes you think how important family is. This thing was willing to do _anything_ to help its kid. It kinda reminds me of us."

"Yeah, it does." Lloyd looked back at the family.

In an instant everything began fading to black, he looked around and found himself engulfed into darkness. He felt light headed again as visions whirred through his head. He saw him and his father making up lost time, him goofing around with his friends, bonding with Sensei as uncle and nephew, his mom, his heart to heart with Maria. Finally he heard that voice again, it rang out through the dark.

" _Promise me you'll always remember that I'm here."_

"I'm here." he realized. "No matter what, everyone I care for is with me. Even if I'm not alone but _feel_ alone. They'll never forget me."

His gem started glowing, he held his hands over it and closed his eyes.

"I'm never alone, not as long as my friends remember me."

Everything turned bright when Lloyd opened his eyes. But it was different, he could see tears blurring up his sight, but he didn't feel sad. He turned and was facing Nya who was crying. In a flash of light, Zane, Jay and Cole came into view, heads down in remorse. With another flash, Ronin had his hat off in respect. He was confused at what was going on, that's when he got a good look at the background.

Lloyd was able to see trees scattered on the ground, it was the exact same spot he woke up in with Kai. They were here! They didn't forget after all! He was overjoyed that they were close by. Suddenly he felt everything shaking, all things in view faded to darkness once more as a voice called out.

"Lloyd, wake up buddy!"

He popped open his eyes to Kai furiously shaking him awake. "Stop! I'm okay!"

He let go of him and allowed him to sit up. "You scared me, you just passed out. Then your eyes started going all weird and they were glowing green."

"Hold on, my eyes were **what**?"

"Glowing! They were glowing! Need I say more?!"

Was that his power? There was no time to figure it out, they had to get back to their friends.

"I'll explain that later, the others are here Kai. We gotta let them know we're okay." He summoned his dragon and took off, Kai was right behind him in a flash. They took off with Lloyd in the lead, it was time to get back to _their_ family.

* * *

Everyone had dialed their sobbing down to sniffling, they still suffered from the shock of their friends end. It was very difficult to process that they weren't coming back. No one knew what to say, they were gone.

It was Maria who stood up and broke the silence, since they didn't need his help anymore, it was time to let him know the truth. "Ronin, I have to be honest with you. I can't hold up our end of the bargain."

He got up with a hint of anger on his face, "What're you talking about?"

She started stuttering out of nervousness, "I'm…I-I'm not..actually… a…"

"In coming!"

Everyone shot their heads up to the source of the combined sound and saw a flash of green and red. When it was over, on the ground in front of them were none other than Lloyd and Kai, smiling big. Everyone ran towards them and started crying all over again, they got together in a group hug and wouldn't let go. After some hesitation, they broke off to give them a chance to speak.

"You had us worried sick! Why didn't you come back home?"

"Nya, calm down, they were kidnapped by the hibagon."Maria assured her. "They couldn't come back if they wanted to."

Lloyd and Kai looked at each other in confusion and replied together. "What's a hibagon?"

It was Ronin who stepped in to answer, "It's like a large gorilla, it's the reason I was coming here in the first place. That thing could make some of the finest fur coats anyone's ever seen!" He leaned in with a crazed look in his eye, "Do you mind telling me where it is?"

They shared a worried look in their eyes. This was going to be hard to explain. Lloyd was brave enough to try and answer, "We weren't kidnapped by a hibagon, we were kidnapped by a…uhh…by a.."

"A group of cannibals!" Kai shouted.

Everyone gave him a look, until Lloyd caught on and added onto that, "Yes! We were kidnapped by cannibals that live here, and we should leave. Now. As in right now if we want to survive."

They quickly formed their dragons while Ronin hopped into R.E.X and Maria rode with Nya. Soon they took off and headed for home.

* * *

The ninja had made it back on the bounty by evening, currently they were eating away to celebrate the return of their friends. They were laughing and having a good time as they explained what happened to Sensei and Misako.

"So Maria actually _knighted_ Ronin for his bravery?" Sensei asked while trying to hold back a laugh.

"Yeah, I was too scared my hand would slip if I used a sword, so he pulled out _a plunger_! He was gonna sell it as a soup ladle, but since his store was damaged he hand that on hand with him. He was really desperate to get that title!"

Misako looked at her son. "I still can't believe you two were kidnapped by cannibals. How did you survive and find the others?"

"Come to think of it, you never explained that little black out you had Lloyd." Kai questioned him.

"It was weird, but I think I understand now. When I blacked out, I saw you guys and how sad you were. But I didn't see Maria. Because I was looking through _her eyes._ I think that's what my gem can do, I can see through others eyes."

Everyone stared at him, it gave them a nervous feeling knowing he could spy on them at anytime. But Lloyd wasn't the person who would do something like that, right?

Sensei broke the awkwardness by standing up. "Well I'm very happy that you've returned. Also, I'm proud that we are closer to winning over evil by retrieving another of the seven gems, and Borg's stolen machine."

Just the ninja stopped this time in realization, finally Jay yelled out, "We forgot to get the machine back from Ronin! Cole, you forgot to ask him!"

"Me?! I was the **temporary** leader! Zane's the smart one, he should've remembered to ask about it!"

"I thought Nya would yell at him to give it back! She was the most angry when we found out about Lloyd and Kai's disappearance!"

"No I wasn't! Besides, _Maria_ was the one who made the deal official with Ronin. You specifically said that you would give him knighthood if he gave us the machine and helped us!"

"No I didn't! I was a victim of a lie, I could barely hear myself talk as I was spouting fibs. My mother would be very disappointed in me, so thanks a lot COLE!"

The five of them kept arguing at who was at fault when they all got whacked by Sensei's staff. They rubbed their heads as Lloyd stood up. "None of you are at fault, because Ronin didn't have the machine in the first place."

"What?" they asked in unison.

"Ronin didn't really know what my gem was capable of, plus it doesn't fit into the details on how the robbery was pulled off. He wouldn't have sold if he knew about its power, and he would've kidnapped me if he really wanted it back. So Ronin's not the guy."

Maria stood up. "So if it wasn't Ronin, then who stole it?"

* * *

 **Back into the unknown darkness:**

"They found two of the gems, and we're still sitting here playing babysitter to that human!" a nasally voice chirped out. "How much longer are we going to do this Goryō?!"

"Patience, Harionago." he smoothly said from the shadows that cloaked them. "I fail to see why you are so eager to get out of The Dying Kingdom, especially when you got out and executed a perfect robbery for that machine."

"Because that's all we're doing down here! We practically dying! The others agree with me, that we should take more action!" Goryō was prepared to counter when a moan from behind them formed. The tired, yellow eyes of their master opened up for the first time in a long time.

"Goryō, Harionago. What has happened since I fell asleep after I resurrected you two and my other captains?"

Harionago took this opportunity to try and get what she wanted. She started praising him. "Oh master, it's so good to see you awake! I'm always happy to look upon the face of my king, Onryō! We have found the reincarnation of the spirit queen!"

Onryō's eyes shot open, " **WHAT?! A NEW QUEEN?! ANOTHER MEDDLING SERAPHINA?!"** His voice boomed off the walls and shook the caves they were in.

"My king, please contain yourself!" Goryō spoke with fear breaking into his smooth voice. "You remember, your awakening is a sign of her return and the coming arrival of the theorized final war, Chaos! This day was coming so you could destroy her once and for all."

The demon king struggled to catch his breath. "But I can't destroy her, that's why she would weaken me and lock me up. If one of us dies, it would mean the demise of the other one. I never thought we would actually make it to the war that was theorized many years ago. It's why I didn't really die when she disappeared, it's why…I'm stuck in this weak state."

Harionago stepped forward. "But my king, we have a plan to prevent that. Also you are the stronger one as of now, Seraphina has reincarnated herself into a human child."

He took a sharp breathe in. "A…human? Show her to me." The two of them turned back to the stone table behind them. They concentrated to bring an image of the human, it worked as it glowed to life with dark magic.

The eerily light it produced turned to pink as it formed an image of Maria in her gi, smiling. Onryō reached out a huge, shaking hand and brought the image up to his sight. He smiled his wicked smile and let out a weak chuckle as he pierced the color with his natural shadows.

"I see what you're doing Seraphina. You think you can hide away in a body that shames the glorious title you had, and pretend to be someone else and hope I won't find you." His hand shook harder as he pretended to crush the image in his hands, wishing it was the real thing.

"Well let me tell you something Seraphina, you are more stupid than I thought. You are a bigger coward that I imagined, I will win this war and have control of this world. Do you know why? It's because I…" He crushed the image into dust and let it ooze out from the cracks of his fingers.

"….found you."

* * *

 **It seems I have introduced two of the villains from chapter 3, the birth of hope if you recall. And they have plans for our favorite ninja. Prepare yourselves for the weekend update, its gonna be KILLER.**

 **Until then, God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good.**


	11. 10:The Breaking Point

**Disclaimer: I don't own Ninjago, just the story idea and the ocs.**

 **Hello readers. I hope you spread the news about my story so that we can have others opinions on here. It would be very thrilling for me, now let's hop in. Like I said previously, this chapter will be KILLER. Just kidding…maybe.**

 **HIT IT!**

* * *

 **Chapter 10: The Breaking Point**

"Evil doesn't sleep! Neither should the seven of you!"

Sensei's voice blared out over the loudspeaker. It had proven to be a much more efficient way to wake the ninja up, especially with the feedback it gave off. But honestly, he was just having too much fun. The seven of them dragged themselves out in uniform and to the deck, moaning and complaining all the way. They lined themselves up and faced Sensei, who for some reason had his arms behind his back.

"Today's lesson will be different for some of you. Some of you are getting stronger, the rest of you still have a long way to go. But first, we should take care of priorities first."

He pulled his hands out that were holding a pair of unusual leather gloves. They had long, metal claws where the fingers would slide in, and looked sharp as a sword.

"These gloves are a weapon known as neko-te. Perfect for a ninja that can throw a good punch…" he turned towards the sleepy pink ninja, "...like you Maria."

His answer behind the weapon made her rub the sleep out of her eyes furiously, "Wait? You mean…I finally get a weapon?" He gave a short nod, she responded by snatching them and slipping them on.

While admiring her new weapon, she spoke enthusiastically,"This is so awesome! Soon I can fight with you guys, and we'll win the fight over evil before we know it!"

Sensei walked over to Lloyd and Kai, "You two have been fortunate in finding two of the gems and unlocking the power within them. However, you still have a long way to go to _control_ it. I will personally see to it that we can prevent an incident similar to the one you had in Hiroshi's Labyrinth."

Lloyd tensed up when Sensei mentioned that. He and Kai made a pact to not tell the truth about what had actually happened to protect the Hibagons. As soon as Sensei walked to the rest of the ninja, he gave Kai a hard kick in the shin. In response he got a silent scream and a glare.

"Might I ask why the heck you did that?!" Kai whispered through clenched teeth.

"Because you told Sensei what happened!" Lloyd whispered back. "We promised to not say a word about what's _really_ in Hiroshi's Labyrinth."

"I didn't! I just said I had a hard time summoning my armor, nothing else."

Their conversation was interrupted by a clearing of a throat. They turned their heads to Sensei giving them a look of disapproval. "Might I ask what it is you two are whispering about? Perhaps it is something you would like to share with all us?"

They quickly shook their heads and let out a breath when the attention was off of them. Sensei continued on with the instructions,"Now as I was saying, Nya, Jay, Cole, and Zane. You four will train as usual, then study up on mythology to get a better idea of what else is to come. Lloyd and Kai, the two of you will come with me to get better control of your new powers."

Maria waved to get his attention. "What about me, Sensei?"

"You will practice with your new weapon by climbing all the way, up there." He had pointed at the sail mast as he spoke, "I want you to climb up and down 30 times. It will build both your upper and lower body strength."

The ninja had their mouths open in shock at this. It was hard to tell from the ground, but that mast looked like it was at least 90 feet tall. They were about to protest at the unfairness of this training when Maria walked past them. She latched onto the mast and started climbing casually, as if it was no big deal. Their faces turned to confusion, was she not gonna complain about how unfair it was?

"Hey Maria? Are you gonna be okay?" Nya called up.

"Sure will," she shouted down in reply.

"Well, do you want of us to stay down here in case you fall?"

"Nope."

"Okay, be safe." Nya turned to the team, "Well, someone's confident." She then walked off to train below deck. Zane, Cole, and Jay followed close behind, and gave another look of confusion as they watched Maria climb higher and higher.

Sensei tapped his staff on the ground to get the remaining ninja's attention, "Now, the two of you will come to my room and we will work on meditating." He walked to the hatch to go below deck, and held it open for his pupils. He noticed he was one short, looking up, he saw Lloyd staring up with a worried look on his face.

"Lloyd, we must begin training."

Lloyd turned and called, "Coming!" He gave a final look up Maria, who climbed slowly but determined. Finally, he walked towards Sensei and headed below deck. Maybe it would be okay, she did want to try and defend herself. If she was that determined to train that hard to accomplish her goal, then everything would be okay. Right?

* * *

Lloyd, Kai, and Sensei had begun meditation in the dark, with only the light of faint embers burning in the spirit smoke. As they focused, Sensei would speak softly of how to control the power within the gems.

"The gems you wear are full of power. Each with its own strengths and weaknesses that will give you aid, or challenges in battle. You must look deep within yourselves and connect with it. Face what holds you back, and strengthen what sets you free."

Deep within their minds was an endless darkness, full of peace and security. Soon, they only heard their heartbeat, everything else had faded off to silence. Time passed slowly around them, until it became nonexistent.

Within Lloyd's mind, he focused on what he felt when he unlocked the gem's power. He remembered that he was never alone, that he would never be forgotten or pushed aside again as he feared many times. Joy began to grow inside him, a green glow began to pierce his mind's darkness. He blinked his eyes open to the now existing sky above him, clouds and a blue sky as far as the eye could see. With another blink, the sky began fading faster….faster….FASTER!

"NO!" Lloyd screamed. He took deep breaths and glanced around, he was back with Kai and Sensei. They had worried looks on their faces, and were prepared to question what had happened when Lloyd stopped them before they started. " I saw something awful! I was up high and then I started falling and I think I almost died!"

Kai put a hand on his shoulder in comfort, "Dude chill! It's probably nothing. If it was, then wouldn't you be _actually_ hurt?" Lloyd shook his head in response. "You see? It was just a vision or something."

"Kai is right." Sensei stood up and offered him a hand to help him up which he gladly took. "It could be you activated your gem's power and saw through the eyes of a bird or something similar. It could also be the work of Onryō again. Maria went through a vision that was hard to interpret as well."

Something clicked in Lloyd's head, suddenly he understood what it really was. He wasted no time and sprinted out of the room to the top deck. He stumbled a little and lost his footing at times, yet he kept going. Thoughts ran furiously through his head, but they all had one similar theme. Maria was in danger.

* * *

Lloyd made it to the top deck and got a good look that fed his worries. Maria was on the ground, weapons thrown to the side. She was rubbing her right wrist, as though it was in pain. He quickly ran over to her, grabbed it out of her hands, and started examining.

"L-Lloyd?! What're you doing?! I have to train and your kinda interup-"

"You fell down and hurt yourself, didn't you?"

Her face immediately fell and she started speaking softly, "How did you know?"

"I **really** didn't mean to, but I used my power and looked through your eyes as it happened. I didn't know what was going on at first, then I realized it probably went off on its own or something. But I'm glad it activated. So how'd it happen?"

Maria looked away and searched for an answer. "I-I thought if I went faster, I could get it done faster. I slipped when I started rushing, and then I lost my grip. But I'm not hurt badly, it's only a bruise."

Lloyd pulled back her sleeve to reveal a forming bruise. He rolled it back up and stood up. "Okay, your story checks out. You can continue training, but I want you to be careful." Like that, he turned and left her.

Instinctively, she grabbed her wrist the moment he went below deck. She hadn't bruised her wrist, she _sprained it._ Maria didn't want to lie, but she was an important part of the team now. Soon she would _have_ to fight with them, or fend for herself. A little sprain wasn't going to put all that on hold, she could get through this. She looked up at the mast and let out a sharp exhale.

"Get it together Maria," she encouraged herself. "You only have to climb 27 more times. You're not gonna to disappoint them." She went over to her tossed neko- te and slipped them back on. Gathering her courage, she latched on to the mast and pulled herself up.

Immediately, the sharp pain of the sprain started kicking in. She bit her lip in pain, sweat began running down her face. But she kept going, slower than ever and kept testing her limits. Nothing was going to make her crack, not now.

* * *

Noon had come which meant break time. Everyone gathered in the dining room, with an array of food cooked up by Zane. They all talked on how their training went, all except for Maria. Her wrist had stung whenever she'd pick up her sandwich or drink, so she could only starve and stare at it. The pain was spreading and it was strong. Maybe she had over done it. Maybe she pushed herself too…no. No, everything was…fine.

"So what do you think, Maria?"

She snapped out of her trance and realized Jay and Cole were staring at her for an answer. "Oh I'm sorry," she blushed. " I wasn't really paying attention. Could you repeat the question?"

"Cole and I were deciding which monster that we found, was the weirdest and most threatening. I'm all for the Basan, it's a giant, fire breathing chicken! You can't get any weirder and threatening than a chicken that tries to make _you_ crispy, it's unnatural and ironic."

Cole scoffed at his reasoning, "Oh please! That's nothing. If you want something scary and weird, then you should've seen the picture of the Nuppeppō. It looks like a big mound of flesh, when it's actually a _living_ mound of flesh that decays. It's creepy, it has a face and limbs under all that fat, but it's still gross. It gives off a horrible smell and sometimes, it travels in packs."

Zane raised his hand. "If I may add my opinion, I think both would prove to be a tough and intimidating foe."

"I'm going with the mound of flesh, " Nya spoke up. "It gave me chills when we saw it's drawing. I wouldn't touch that disgusting thing with a 30 foot pole, even if it was a life or death situation."

"But we already know who you guys voted for, Maria's the tiebreaker." Jay gave her a hard stare, "So who do **you** choose?"

Maria struggled to find words. She opened her mouth to answer and…

 **BANG!**

Everyone was flung to the side as the bounty had stopped abruptly. They got up and quickly ran out to the deck, only to see nothing. Black smoke filled the air and scratched their lungs with its scent. They fanned it away while coughing hard, it began to lift slowly and reveal the damage that was done. Only two holes near the side of the deck got their attention, for they had seen them before. Misako quickly ran over and examined them, she turned back to face them with a terrified look.

"Get ready to fight! I know what made these holes, and she's close by!"

Zane gave her a confused look. "What do you mean 'she?' Those are bite marks from a beast, nothing else could make them."

" **Bite marks**?! You think a **lady** like me would do something a dumb animal would do?!" A voice echoed around them.

In a blink of an eye, long, dark purple hair started crawling up the side of the ship like a spider. It pulled up the owner of such hair. She had pale skin that was blemished with tar colored lips, her eyes were an icy blue that gave chills with one look. She wore a long sleeve, black leather jumpsuit with black high heeled boots. Her nails were pointed and precise, and looked ready to slice anything that got in its path.

She put her hands on her hips and shot them a disapproving look. "Let me get this straight. I wanted to look nice, so I stole a modern outfit, I sharpened my hair, I even prepared a little _party_ to take the great Seraphina to," she pointed at Maria who was quickly guarded by the ninja, "and you think I'm some sort of animal based on my actions!"

Nya stepped forward. "Wait a minute…I know you. You're Harionago! You're that crazy lady who can't take a joke!"

"Glad to see someone's paying attention. Now how about we get this over with, and you hand over that cheap version of the spirit queen?"

"No way!" Kai shouted at her, "If you want **Maria** , then you're gonna have to go through me first!"

"Very well."

She tightened her hair like a whip and snapped Kai out of the picture! He flew over the side from the sudden attack, screaming as he tried to get back on the battlefield. Nya went at her with full rage, thrusting her sword at the demon woman. Harionago just formed her hair into a large shield until the water ninja stopped to catch her breath. In that moment, she grabbed her by the wrists and flung her into Jay, who caught her by chance.

The ninja wasted no time and ganged up her with Spinjitzu, they engulfed her into one huge circle and closed in on her. Even in the bright lights of the attack, she managed to grab onto them and keep them from escaping. They struggled and wriggled out of her death grip with little success. They could feel a scratching sensation as they tried to escape, it brought a laugh out of Harionago's mouth.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." She mocked them, "It'll only hurt your delicate, soft human bodies. Especially if I do this!" The hair tightened on them and made it harder to breathe. Her face turned to Sensei and Misako, hiding Maria behind them.

"Get away from her now, or say goodbye to these prime examples of a lesser species!" She held the ninja high above her head. Her eyes locked with the pink ninja, giving her headache as she tired to figure out what to do. Get taken and lose the fight against evil in an instant, or have her friends suffer in exchange for her safety?

"Hate to interrupt this tense moment, but how are humans the lesser species?!" Jay shouted at her, "Your species includes monsters that just roam around like idiots, and they attack whatever they want whenever they want! They're basically brain dead!"

"J-Jay..I think you should stop talking!" Lloyd chocked out.

Harionago had tightened her hair even more in response, and gave them a glare that could burn holes right through them. With a sudden surge of adrenaline, Maria charged and took a swing at her arm, ripping her sleeve and scratching her arm. She tightened at this attack on her, and slowly turned her head in Maria's direction.

"You shouldn't have done that…SERAPHINA!" Harionago grabbed her with just one strand of hair, and flung her into the mast by her right wrist. Maria clung onto it quickly, but winched in pain as her wrist inflamed. "You're gonna pay for that Seraphina, and your gonna pay for what you did to my king! He will win Chaos, and disintegrate you FOREVER!"

Before she could strike, a scream interrupted and got closer and closer, it stopped when it landed on Harionago. Kai had tackled her down with the force of airjitzu, and in shock she dropped the enslaved ninja to the ground. Her hair quickly tossed him off and to the side, she jumped up and charged it at Maria, forcing her harder into the mast. She screamed out in pain, she quickly tried scratching her hair off with her free hand. The results ended up with sparks flying off with every slash, and a maniacal laugh from Harionago.

"You're kidding right? Now I really do believe that you are the _failed_ copy of Seraphina! You really are pathetic, but either way, it would satisfy me to torture you for all the crazy things you believed in!"

"H-hold on a sec!" Maria squeaked out. "I'm not really Seraphina, I don't have her memories. I don't know who she _really_ was, I'm someone entirely different."

" **LIAR**!"

She wounded up her hair into two large sections, and spun them like drills. They came flying at Maria, who closed her eyes and waited for the blow. It never came. Maria peeked to see Sensei holding Harionago back with his staff, pulling her farther away. The ninja pointed their weapons at her in case she tried anything, but she didn't.

"Maria," she looked down at Zane who backed up with his arms open. "you can come down now. I'll catch you." She did as instructed and unhooked herself from the mast, Zane caught her and placed her down to let her stand. They both walked up to the prisoner, who just took her defeat calmly.

"Start talking," Misako demanded. "What is Onryō planning?"

"He's not planning anything, he's only being forced to follow a destiny that never should've existed! My king is a pawn in this crazy idea that Seraphina made!"

"What are you talking about?"

Harionago just hung her head down, they slowly leaned in as she mumbled something under her breath. She elbowed Sensei in his gut and spun wildly, hair forming a sharp tornado! Everyone backed up and ducked quickly, giving her a chance to escape. She whistled a high pitched whistle, and underneath her came a swirling hole of darkness that sucked her and itself in.

"Quick, she's getting away!" Jay ran over to where she stood and whistled like she had. It had no effect. In frustration, he kept trying and trying, eventually he started jumping on the ground with pure annoyance. "Why isn't this stupid thing working?!"

Before anyone could answer, a groan of pain was let out. The source? Maria. Her sleeved was rolled back, revealing a dark purple, swollen wrist. The crew gathered around her, mortified at her injury.

"That's disgusting!" Kai cried out. "It looks like Cole's meatloaf!" He got a glare from said ninja. "Which tastes great by the way!"

"Maria, did she hurt you that much?" Lloyd asked with worry in his voice.

"N-no," she replied while looking down. "She did only half of the damage. The truth is...I didn't get a bruise. I had….a sprain and…I kept training anyways."

Everyone gasped at her answer. Was she really stupid enough to push herself like that? Why would she act so foolishly, and not think about the effect this would have on the strength of the team? How could she be so selfish?

* * *

"Let me get this straight. You say you're gonna be fine and you ask us to let you train unsupervised. We give you your space. You look me in the eye and tell me it's only a bruise. I believe you. And what do you do? You give yourself a second degree sprain in a fight!"

Lloyd had been pacing around in the medical room and finally stopped on that last sentence. Maria was sitting on the bed with her wrist in a splint, an ice pack was pressed firmly on it to reduce the swelling. She ducked her head every time Lloyd called out her actions that gave her deep regret. It was wrong what she did, but she didn't have another choice. How was she supposed to know that they would be attacked?

"I'm sorry, I just wanted to get stronger and help the team."

"But this isn't helping us. Now we have to take care of you until you get better. We're weaker as a team and the enemy has the upper hand to attack us or kidnap you. And it's all because you didn't tell us, instead you kept it a secret. You were acting selfish!"

Maria's eyes widened at that part, her eyes started getting damp. "S-selfish? B-but I just wanted to…. I thought that...I could do it."

"You did something alright. You risked our lives and yours, and now we can't go anywhere because of what Harionago did to the engine. You're lucky we can still stay in the air! But this is all because you thought you could do it!"

"Get out."

He arched an eyebrow. "Excuse me?"

"I said get out!" She lowered her head to hide her face. "If you're not going to listen, then maybe you should…go."

"Fine by me," he turned and slammed the door behind him, without looking back. The moment he got out into the hall, he nearly bumped into Sensei Wu, who looked disappointed.

"Are you deaf?" He asked.

"What? No, of course not Sensei."

"Then why didn't you listen to her?"

Lloyd was at a lost for words. He realized he let the anger take over him in that moment, it crashed down on his heart hard. He started to head back in, when his arm was caught in the grip of Sensei.

"Let her rest. I know why she did what she did," he spoke softly. "The exercise I gave to her was to see what's holding her back from her true potential."

Lloyd whispered, "Really? Well, what does she have to do to unlock it?"

" I knew that it was no challenge that a beginner could overcome simply. But she went on, even when it caused her great pain. She wanted to help us, even though it was far beyond what she was capable of."

"So? What're you getting at Sensei?"

"Maria puts false hope in herself. She wants to please and protect those around her, even though she knows what she can and can't do. In the end, she might give her own life to make sure we're safe."

A mortified look was spreading on Lloyd's face, "Sensei, i didn't know that… I wouldn't have yelled at her if I knew. Can't we stop her from hurting herself?"

"I don't know how, nephew. This will be difficult, we must figure out why she's like this and how to fix it. What I do know, is that we can't let our hope die."

* * *

 **Well, well. Someone pushed themselves past their BREAKING POINT. Get it? Hey where'd everyone go this time?! Don't worry, this isn't the last we've seen of the villains. Also a reminder that our hiatus is coming up soon. Please tell fellow fanfic friends to read, review, and follow my story.**

 **Remember, God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good.**


	12. 11: Harionago's House Of Horrors(Part 1)

**Disclaimer: I don't own Ninjago, just the story idea and the ocs.**

 **Hiatus coming soon, please review my story, you know the drill. WARNING! There's a horror theme in this and possibly next chapter, so reader beware.**

 **HIT IT!**

* * *

 **Chapter 11: Harionago's House Of Horrors (Part 1)**

" _Seraphina, are you in there?"_

 _The six year old boy kept knocking softly on the huge bedroom door. Tears kept streaming down his face, they made fun of him again. Those mean guards laughed at him when he mimicked their fighting moves, he just wanted to be a great knight too. He even made his own wooden sword and dubbed it Laeta, that word always made him because that's what it meant, happy. It was the same word Seraphina would call him, because he was her happy, little boy._

 _But it made him sad now. His attempt to run away from the mean guards resulted in him tripping, and broke the sword in half. He got a scratch on his face when he hit the ground, the kind that stung when you touched them very gently. He just wanted her now, he wanted someone to make him feel better. He wanted his mo-_

" _What's the matter, Oliver?" A warm voice spoke out._

 _Oliver looked up at the long, white-pink dress she wore, he could see her comforting face lean over to look down at him. In an instant, he felt tears pour out and found himself hugging her legs tightly while blubbering._

" _The guards were b-being mean to me! I wa-wanna learn how to f-fight, so I watched them and p-pretended I was one of them! But I-I broke Laeta when I ran away, and I hurt my-myself! Now I can't be a knight!"_

 _He started to cry loudly and struggled to maintain his breath, while he wiped eyes with his nighties' sleeve. Oliver then felt her hand rubbing his hair gently, he opened his eyes to have them locked with the now kneeling Seraphina._

" _Don't cry," she said with a smile. "I know you're going to be a great knight and something even better in the future. Because you are filled to the brim with something important:compassion. That is much better than carrying around any sword."_

 _He dialed down to a sniffle."R-really?"_

" _Of course. I know without a doubt, that you and I will do great things together. I can show you, I'll show you something that I haven't shown to anyone." Oliver's face brightened up at this. She took his hand and lead him into her room, where she walked to the end of it, and opened her patio doors._

 _The moonlight enhanced the forget me nots of her grassy garden, and added a sparkle to her little pond. Everything was silent, but it was a good silence that made you want to fall asleep. The stars above them shined brightly, as if they were getting closer and closer and…_

" _AHH! Seraphina! The stars are attacking us, it's because I don't wanna wish on them so I ignore them!" He had ran behind her and buried himself in her dark brown curls, while holding his broken sword out in a shaking hand._

" _No, no, they're not stars," Seraphina replied with a chuckle. "They are Yōsei, but you might know them as fairies," the little boy peeked his head out._

" _F-fairies?" He fully came out from behind her and got a good look at them. All of them shined brightly with a different color, but together they looked like mini rainbows here and there. A smile grew on his face when he realized they held no threat. "They're so pretty!"_

 _As if they heard him, they abruptly stopped floating around and turned to face him. One little green orb floated towards him, revealing it's humanoid self. It had big, black eyes and snow white skin that gave off a green tinted glow around itself. It arms and legs were skinny and frail, and were hard to see from its flowing mint dress and long hair. The fairy cooed and hummed as it floated up to his face, giving a big frown when it noticed the scratch on his face. Gently, it reached out a cool hand to his scratch, and pulled it back smiling._

 _Seraphina kneeled down, just enough so Oliver could see his reflection in her crown's gem. It was gone! His scratch was gone! He kept examining himself in the reflection and managed to say, "Seraphina! I'm all better!"_

" _Of course, Yōsei have strong healing powers. They heal those who are in most need of it, and they respond nicely to someone with a pure heart. Like you."_

 _The little boy smiled big at her, only to have it melted into a frown. "Seraphina? The guards were saying things on how you had to go somewhere far away, for a few days. Will you remember to come back? Or will you stay there and leave me alone like I was before?"_

 _She said nothing, but instead got up and walked back into her room. Moments later she came out, clasping something small in her hands. They opened up to show a dull, round gem, which she held up to his neck. It started giving off a soft, green glow that made Oliver close his eyes, when he opened them he looked down at his neck. The gem had wrapped around his neck like a necklace or something!_

" _Oliver," he looked up. "This is a special gem, only you can take it off. Because you are full of joy that you share with those you care deeply for, you will be able to look through their eyes whenever you feel lonely or want to make sure they are okay."_

 _Overwhelmed, he jumped as high as he could and hugged her tightly. She picked him up and let his head rest on his shoulder, perfect for him to whisper, "Thank you so much Seraphina! I promise to make sure you're okay all the time. Now we can still be together because of this gem!"_

" _Even if you don't have your gem, I'm here. Always remember that I'm here. Promise me you'll remember that. Promise me, Oliver."_

* * *

Lloyd shot his eyes open, with the cold feeling of tears streaming down his face. He had woken up from that….dream? But, it felt…familiar to him. Like something he swore he wouldn't forget, was finally remembered. A knock at his door interrupted his thought, he sat up, wiped his tears and called, "Come in!"

His door opened with Maria on the other side, holding a plate of chocolate chip cookies. "Hey there," she answered nervously as she walked over. "Zane helped me make these for you. It's because I wanted to say I'm sorry for the other day. I shouldn't have yelled at you so rudely."

He sighed and looked her in the eye. "Maria, I'm the one who's sorry. I let my anger get out of control, only because you're an important part of the team now. You should've told us about your injury, but on the other hand, we didn't know we would get attacked like that. It's in the past now."

She smiled big as Lloyd gave her a look. "As thoughtful as it is, why would you make me cookies for breakfast?"

Her face went blank. "It's three in the afternoon."

"WHAT?!" He quickly scrambled out of bed and tried gathering his gi and weapons together. "Why didn't anyone wake me up?! We planned to track down Harionago and figure out why she attacked us!"

Maria kept her eyes locked on Lloyd as he kept running about his room. "Well, you really pushed yourself last night during training. Sensei thought it would be nice to let you sleep in a little. Plus the rest of us trained and we're at a good spot, we know Harionago stole Cyrus's machine and we might have found a way to track her down."

"Okay that's good, I'll change and meet up with you guys." She took that as a sign to walk out and was halfway out the door, when he stopped her by grabbing the plate out of her hand. "I'm gonna need my energy, might as well keep these from going to waste."

Maria just continued walking out, and closed the door behind her. She stopped in the middle of the hallway as she thought to herself, 'Did Lloyd have tear stains on his face?'

* * *

After rushing, and tripping occasionally, Lloyd managed to find the crew in the bridge. They were gathered around the big screen, displaying a map of New Ninjago City, as Jay was slowly typing something in. Excluding him, they turned to greet their leader.

"Good morning nephew," Sensei said. "Did you get a good rest?"

"Yeah, I guess," Lloyd replied with a short yawn at the end. "So, you guys know how to find Harionago?"

"Yes, we contacted Borg and he gave us valuable information," Zane spoke up. "Apparently, he installs GPS tracking chips in his machines and succeeding prototypes. He installed one in the machine, but that's when it started to fail in important testing phases. It was never removed because it got stolen the next day."

"So we asked Borg if there was a way for _us_ to track it down, and he gave us it's activation code to help us find it," Nya finished.

"Great, we'll find her soon," Lloyd began to walk over to them. He started hovering over Jay's shoulder as he slowly and carefully typed the code in. He stopped suddenly and slowly turned his head to Lloyd, flashing him a nasty look.

"Stop. Hovering. Over. My. Shoulder. NOW," he spat out dramatically.

It was enough freak Lloyd out. He whispered over to no one in particular, "What's with crazy here?"

Kai answered, "The code's really long and it has a bunch of numbers and letters. This is Jay's 15th time putting it in, he wanted to be the one to type it, but he went too fast the first few times. Then it just ended up to putting in the wrong thing or loosing his spot, so now he's going _really_ slow and doesn't want to be distracted or else. The guy's starting to get anger issues."

"Found her!"

Jay stood up and had his arms up in victory, as the team gave him a look. Cole got ahold of him before he went crazier, "Well, where is she? I don't see it on the map," he pointed at the unaltered screen.

"I'm getting there," he whined. After more typing, he pulled up an image of an old, four story Victorian mansion. It was huge and had a faded blood red color, peeking out from its dark gray exterior, that was made over time. "This is where the GPS signal was found, in a creepy old mansion."

"Zane, download the coordinates to that place," Lloyd ordered as the nindroid began to do as told. "We'll have to fly there on dragon back, and we must prepare ourselves for anything. Harionago is insane and powerful, so Maria-"

"I know, I have to stay," she interrupted. "That place looks pretty creepy anyways, plus I got Sensei and Misako to keep me company!"

"I'm afraid not," Misako replied. They all turned towards the two with confused looks. "Wu and I must get parts for the ship, we're lucky we can still stay in the air but we can't fly."

"So, I'm going to be alone?"

"Worry not pupil," Sensei assured her. "I know it would hard for you to be alone while you're injured, so I got you a babysitter."

The ninja looked shocked, Maria on the other hand was mortified. "Why?! Why'd you do this?! I'm too old for a babysitter!"

Sensei calmly responded, "Because you need to be protected just in case, we'll all be gone for a long time. I'm afraid I can't cancel now, he should be here any minute."

As if on cue, a knock was heard at the bridge door. Without anyone calling in the person on the other side, the door was flung open. "Heeeey, there's my favorite ninja!" he said loudly.

"Guys," Maria asked while turning towards the ninja who were mortified for her now. "Who's this man?"

"Maria," Cole spoke up, "this is our manager, Dareth."

* * *

"Do you think she's gonna hate us?" Nya called over to Lloyd.

"Nah, Maria's not the kind of person to hold a grudge," he responded. He then quietly whispered to himself, "I hope."

The second Dareth laid eyes on her, he started talking her ear off. He kept asking questions on what her element was, how she became a ninja, if she was willing to do a commercial with the ninja for the kids. Her eyes just screamed at them to take her with them, but they were halfway out the door. Now they were flying miles and miles away from that mess on dragon back.

The mansion could finally be seen, and it was even more eerie in person. The ninja felt chills go down their spines as they landed close. The wind howled around them, the windows of the house looked down on them like eyes. Shadows closed in on them as they walked towards it closer….closer…closer…and stopped. In that moment, a loud silence came in an instant, as they stood in the house's shadow. The creaking of the old wood pierced the quiet, colors flushed from their faces as they felt a dark presence surrounding them.

" **ANYONE IN THERE?!"**

They jumped at this yell, and frowned when they realized it came from Jay. No one and nothing answered him. "Well it's empty. Guess we can go home now," he answered cheerily. He then chocked as Cole yanked the collar of his gi, to stop him from leaving.

Despite his attempts to wriggle out of his grip, they walked up to the door. Kai reached for the knob, but stopped to poke fun at the blue ninja. "You know, you should grow some backbone Jay. Or else even the littlest of things will give you a heart attack, and I'll just laugh."

He grinned at how their eyes popped out as they looked at him. "Great, now you're all freaked out by this old house. What's the matter? Did the door open by itself?"

"YES," was they only word they spoke out, in unison.

Kai looked behind him and started shaking at the now open door, the reveal the darkness of the mansion. "Jay's right," he spoke quickly. "No one's here so let's go!" This time Lloyd caught Kai and dragged him in, with the rest of the ninja following close behind. The door slammed behind them, getting a few shrieks out of them, but not Lloyd.

He set his fist aglow with energy and illuminated the room. The bare walls were fading from a soft white to a brown with mold growing on them. A dusty, spiderweb chandelier hung above them, and looked to be hanging by a thread. There was a staircase at the end of the room that split into two, and lead to two different sides of the visible second floor hallways of the house.

"This place is in a better condition than I thought," Zane said aloud. "Then again, I suppose Harionago feels at home with an eerie theme."

"Yeah, everything looks spooky alright," Cole replied. "Plus it's bigger on the inside, it'll be hard to find her or the machine."

The green ninja called his teammates in, "Now I know this place might be scary, but there's nothing to be scared of. As long as we stay together, we can get through this. So what do you say?"

A high pitched shriek answered in reply, damaging their ears and got their bodies shaking. Black smoke furiously streamed up from beneath the floorboards. It was too much for the ninja, they started screaming and ran this way and that way in the blinding smoke. It didn't matter if they were alone or not, they **had** to get away **now.**

Lloyd ran around trying to find shelter, when something heavy tackled into him. He was knocked into a door, and looked up from his position on the ground to see Kai and Cole on him in relief. "Oh man! I'm glad to see you guys," he spoke as they got up off the ground. "Do you think the others ended up together like we did?"

"I hope so. Jay **better** be with Nya, I'm blaming him if anything happens to my sister."

"So, you're the leader. What do we do?"

Lloyd looked around at where they ended up, a bedroom perfect for a child. It was filled with plush carpets, blankets, and pillows, a silk bed with a canopy and drapes rested on the right side of the the room. The ground had scattered toys, with the exception of a dozen porcelain dolls sitting at a mini version of a grand dining room's table. The mood of this room was uneasy, as though someone or something was watching them.

"Okay, I saw we look for clues on Harionago and the machine. You guys look around, I'll try to use my power and find the others."

"Sounds like a plan," Cole grinned. Lloyd sat down with his eyes closed and began to meditate, while Cole and Kai searched the room, high and low. There was nothing to be found at all, no matter how hard they searched. No secret doors, hidden passages, traps, nothing at all.

The two of them gave up at their hopeless search, as their leader stood up groaning. "I can't activate it," he complained. "Did you guys find anything?" In response, he got two head shakes from them. "Well, guess we'll just have to find them the old fashion way."

They headed out to continue their search and shut the door behind them. They made their way to the other hallway of the second floor, but stopped as a whimpering sound was heard. It was almost like a soft crying, but there was nothing around that could make it. Ignoring it, they kept walking when out of the blue, was a scream!

It was easily recognized to be Kai's, and he showed signs of pure terror on his face. It was odd seeing him like this, of all people. Cole and Lloyd tried to get him snap out of his daze and explain what happened. His only answer was a finger pointing down at his leg, with a porcelain doll clamped onto it.

Cole just gave him a look, "Really? Are you trying to tell me that **this** …" he scooped the doll up by its arm, "grabbed onto you?" He got a dramatic nod, slow and short, as an answer. After a moment, he bursted out laughing. It was just ridiculous.

"Hold on Cole, maybe it did come to life. After what we've seen, anything is….possi..ble," Lloyd had slowed down as he talked, for he gestured as he spoke and saw 11 more of the dolls surrounding them in a circle. They all started crying louder and louder, until it became like a chant. Then they blinked and started getting up, walking in a slowly, creepy fashion.

The three ninja regained their senses and ran out from the chanting circle, chucking the doll they held far away and hard. They tried not to scream but couldn't hold it in, they shrieked and ran as fast as they could.

"Nya! Where are you sis?!"

"Zane! Jay! Say SOMETHING!"

"Where are you guys?! We need you! WE'RE TRAPPED IN A HAUNTED HOUSE!"

* * *

Jay, Zane, and Nya had dog piled into a dark library, with shelves that reached the tall ceiling's skylight. Everything was covered in inches of dust and cobwebs, the bare floorboards creaked with every little movement they made. Books were almost covered in mold that kept growing. A chill could be felt whispering throughout the room, giving the shivers as it snaked around them.

"So, do you think there's a clue or something to find Harionago?" Jay asked.

"It's possible," the nindroid responded. "We should look around, but be on guard if she set booby traps."

They split, flipping through pages and spaces between books. They pulled up floorboards, tore apart bindings, squeezed behind bookshelves. The place was clean, of clues that is. Every place was checked, except for one they didn't know of, dear reader.

Nya towards her friends after searching through a row of books. "This is hopeless. The whole place is empty except for books, books, and more books! Maybe we should back!" She screamed shortly after she finished speaking, for she fell into a hollow space beneath her.

"Nya!" They cried. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine," she responded. "But I think you guys should come down here. This place is…interesting."

They did as she asked, and hopped down into a dimly lighted room. Inside was something that could **not** be unseen. Empty cages were narrowly lined up against the sides of the room, chains were scattered across the floors. The light source of the room was only a few candles, gathered around a shrine and a picture that was ripped and burned. From what was unscathed, the image resembled…

"Seraphina!" Zane shouted in realization. He pointed at the image's untouched parts, "Look, you can vaguely see her pink streak. And there's her neck and the bottom of her dress. It is her, but why is it ruined?"

"I'm guessing the people who lived here were against her," Nya assumed. "It would make sense why Harionago would come here. It must be a base for Onryō's forces or something."

"Oh, so these are prisoner cells!" Jay realized, his face started to fall slowly as he spoke, "So that's why the picture's ruined, it's cause they hated her! And they wanted to destroy her and now we're in here. With..two of the…gems. Hmmm, then I guess we should, oh I don't know, GET OUT OF HERE RIGHT NOW!"

He tried running, but both his arms were caught by Zane and Nya. "We can't leave!" Zane protested. "Lloyd, Kai and Cole are still here, and we need to try and find the machine!"

"But it's scary here! And it'll be impossible to find the others **and** the machine without getting caught by that psycho! She could be ANYWHERE!" A chill suddenly breathed down his neck.

"Like right behind you."

* * *

"Did we loose them?"

"For the 18th time, Cole, yes! Yes we did! And you thought _I_ was being ridiculous."

"Will you two shush!? They might come back!" Lloyd hissed at them.

The three of them never ran so hard or fast in all of their lives, unfortunately they weren't paying attention and had gotten lost. Based on how it got harder to run at one point, they were possibly at least a floor above from where they were before. The hallways looked the same, except for one big difference. Above from where they were standing, a huge painting of a shadow with glowing, yellow eyes looked down on them.

"Is that, Onryō?" Lloyd asked to no one in particular.

"I think it is him," Kai answered. "And for a formless shadow, he's actually kinda, ugly."

"Ugly?" A soft voice whispered. The three ninja tightened at this sound. It spoke again, with more voices accompanying it.

"Ugly? UGLY? **UGLY?!** "

"Uh, Kai?"

"Yeah, Cole?"

"Maaaaybe you should tell the nice voices that you're SORRY!" He yelled at him through gritted teeth.

"Cole, chill. Kai didn't do anything wrong, he's entitled to his opinion."

" **WRONG!** YOU CAN'T INSULT OUR KING! LONG LIVE ONRYŌ! DOWN WITH THE SPIRIT QUEEN!"

After cowering from the shouting, Lloyd stood tall out of the three. "Okay, so whoever is talking to us right now should know we didn't mean to insult your king! We just need to find something important and then we'll leave."

"NO," the sounds of slamming doors and windows echoed until it reached their closest escape routes. "YOU INSULTED OUR KING. YOU CAME INTO OUR SANCTUARY. NOW YOU WILL STAY, AND PLAY WITH US!"

That was enough. They sprinted harder than they ever did, running from the voices that kept chanting, "STAY AND PLAY! STAY AND PLAY!" But you can't run away, especially when you're already surrounded. They made it to the back to the first floor, and stopped in the center.

"Kai," Lloyd locked eyes with him. The fire ninja already picked up on what he meant, by holding his arm up. The chanting stopped as he did so, the volume went back to a quieter one, even with the chorus of voices. It felt as though all eyes were on him as they spoke.

"YOU HAVE A GEM. TWO GEMS. YOU CAN FREE OUR KING!" They started to grow louder. "FREE OUR KING! FREE OUR KING!"

The two gem bearers clasped a hand on their gems. "No way!" Kai shouted at them with growing confidence. "We're not giving them to you guys! And we're not going to free your king!"

"Yeah! As soon as I get mine, I'll beat him up!"

"You can't take them from us, and if anyone claims they can, then I've got news for them!" Lloyd finished, and crossed his arms. "Go ahead! Tell me, is there anyone who can take them from us?"

"Yes," they whispered.

"Yeah?" Kai butted in. "Well where are they?!"

"BEHIND YOOOOOU."

* * *

 **Wasn't that a chilling chapter? I do hope it wasn't too much. Also, sorry for posting so late, but it felt appropriate since a Halloween aura is in the air. Also, SWEET DREAMS! AHAHAHAH! Seriously, I hope you guys get a good rest this weekend.**

 **Until then, God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good.**

 **UPDATE: I changed the theme to fantasy, but it's not going to be any different. I've been thinking if I should change it, so I googled fantasy traits and my story falls under that category. So my story is a magic adventure themed one, as said by the power of Google!**

 **I'm not taking down the humor tag because I don't want people to think it's all doom and gloom from the way my summary describes it. That is all.**


	13. 12: Harionago's House Of Horrors(Part 2)

**Disclaimer: I don't Ninjago, only the story and ocs.**

 **Good evening. As you know, this is our last chapter. When you finish reading this chapter, you'll realize that the story is on a short hiatus. But fear not, for I shall return! During this time, I'm going to plan my original story chapters and focus on the chapters that are canon with the new episodes. So this would be a good time to pm me or add a little something in with you review on what you want to see. I will do my best to pick the most fitting ideas to add in.**

 **Now let's go!**

* * *

 **Chapter 12: Harionago's House Of Horrors (Part 2)**

"BEHIND YOOOOOU."

Kai turned around, only to be pushed back into the wall! Cole and Lloyd quickly looked to where their brother was flung. They tensed up and turned back at the sound of a maniacal giggle.

"I must admit, it's fun to hurt that porcupine headed friend of yours," Harionago chuckled, while twirling her torn-tipped hair with her fingers. "Too bad I don't have all day to have fun with him or you two either. After all, it's rude to break in and enter a lady's house."

The two ninja unsheathed their sword and scythe, respectively. They put some distance between them and circled around her. She only chuckled at this, and had a tar colored smile at this pathetic attempt to attack. All three sets of eyes had locked together and shone with a desire to win.

"I'll admit, it's wrong to break in and enter," Cole shouted, "but you're no lady. So I don't feel bad."

"You're outnumbered, so I suggest you tell us what this place is and where the machine is!"

"Hmmm, I **could.** " She mocked them and started acting as though she thought hard about it. "But what fun would that be? If I just gave you the answers then I'd have less time to mess around with you. And I have more important things to do, so that gives you two options. Hand over the gemstones or get beaten up."

Lloyd stepped forward and showed no fear in him. "Over my dead body!"

Harionago lowered her head, a shadow covered her eyes. She gave a soft chuckle. "I see. Thing is though, I'm going to hold you to that."

Without warning, she ran at Lloyd at swung her hair at him like a sword, fast and wild. He succeeded in blocking most of the blows, and got a few scratches here and there. Cole had timed his attack just right, and successfully wrapped his scythe around her, halting her where she stood. Unknown to the both of them, she sneaked a few thin strands of hair behind their backs.

"Now listen up Harionago," Lloyd spoke, "we're not alone. The rest of us are here and it's been long day for us since we came in here. So tell us what you did with the machine and what this place is. And we won't stand for this or anything you'll try to pull!"

Right on cue, Cole fell face down.

"Cole! I didn't mean lit-litera-lly…" Lloyd had followed suit and fell to the ground in dizzy state. "Ohhh, my head….wha-what's going on?"

"Pressure points." He looked up to Harionago loosening herself from the scythe. She walked over and kneeled down to look him in the eye. "Because my tips are pointed enough, I can activate pressure points on any being. But that's half of it, I must give credit to the lavender I use to wash my hair. It has natural sleeping properties, but if it grows in The Dying Kingdom, then it gets a little poisoned and can give you a migraine."

"Dy-ying Kingdom?"

"Don't think so much about that old place. Now then, I believe you have something that would make my king happy." She started reaching for Lloyd's neck with a section of her sharp hair. Her eyes burned with desire, and twitched at how the gem was almost in her grasp. He could feel the prickling of her hair as she got to work, and then it stopped abruptly.

Harionago sat up and sniffed the air. "Is something…burning?"

"You bet!" She whipped around to face Kai, with his fists aglow with flames. "Let's just say, instead of purple hair, I think you should try red, _firey_ locks!" She looked at her hair that was rested on the ground, now lighting up with flames like a candle wick.

At the sight of this, she jumped up and screamed a high pitched scream. She ran around, trying to put the flames out from rolling, to whipping it in the air. Kai took this chance to help Lloyd and Cole up, who were still numb and limp from Harionago's attack. Both leaned on his shoulders for support, and held their heads in place as they all watched Harionago acting crazier than she already was.

They couldn't help but laugh at this sight. They laughed harder and harder as she finally put out the flames, leaving her with uneven, charred hair. She bit her lip at the sound of them, her breathing depend and her eye twitched. Veins popped out on her head and neck, she was not going to be a laughing stock!

"You boys wanna play and laugh?" She whispered breathily, "Then let's play."

With a snap of her fingers, a black puff of smoke puffed up from the floorboards and started growing larger. It became bigger and bigger, gaining the ninja's attention as it grew larger, taller. "You see boys," Harionago spoke, "this old house is where I housed my army. I'm ranked fifth in Onryō's personal guard, and I'm captain of many monsters that I've captured for my army."

They shared a confused look on their faces. Cole was the one to speak up. "You command an army of creepy dolls and smoke?"

"No, you idiots!" she replied. "My army suffered in battle against Seraphina's forces, and now most of them are just plain demons that posses inanimate objects. However, when I came back here, I noticed a small handful of my creatures were slowly dying. So I fixed them up and now they're ready to play."

At that final word, the smoke had transformed into a giant centipede that screeched as it came to life. It locked its black bug eyes on the three ninja and gave out a chittering sound.

"This," she gestured to the beast, " is an ōmukade. Sure it looks like a regular centipede, but other than size, it has a major difference from a regular centipede. It _loves_ to play with humans before it EATS THEM."

The ninja gulped and started backing away slowly. Harionago just chuckled as she kicked the giant bug. It screeched once more and began chasing them around the first floor. She watched in pleasure how the porcupine headed human did most of the work in running away, for he had two numb humans clinging to him for dear life. A cackle escaped her lips as the pincers of the ōmukade narrowly scratched them.

Taking in the final scenes of this wonderful moment, she backed up and brought her fingers to her mouth. A final thought came to her mind as her darkness whisked her away to check on the other "guests" that she had.

'I always get the last laugh.'

* * *

"Jay? Nya? Please, wake up!"

The couple opened their eyes to the glowing, blue eyes of their nindroid friend leaning over them. Their attempts to sit up, got their heads spinning and aching painfully. Once there eyes were fully opened, they looked around in the darkness.

"What happened?" Nya asked.

"Harionago," Zane answered her. "She had an advantage over us by sneaking up on us, now we're trapped."

Jay gave him a look of doubt and started getting up. "What? We're not trapped, she just knocked us out. If we were trapped then, wouldn't we be in a ce-"

He was stopped short by walking into black iron bars. Upon realizing what had happened, the blue ninja started grabbing the bars and shook them, as if to question if they were real. He could feel his power fade with every touch, as though it was being drained. It was the same feeling of the vengestone that could block out their powers.

"No, no, no, no, no! We're trapped in here! We've been captured by a psycho, who's probably going to make us do her bidding!" In terror, he faced his two friends and got on his knees. "Take a good look, this is our new home now! FOREVER!"

Nya walked over to him and put an arm around him in comfort. "It'll be okay, we can get out of here. There's gotta be someway out, and we'll find it."

"Good for you!" They turned to the source and locked eyes with none other than Harionago herself. "It's best to stay positive before you suffer. That way I can see how the hope and joy dying within your eyes as I show you true pain!"

The three of them stood up and grasped the bars, flashing her nasty looks out of anger.

"My brother better be okay when I get out of here! Or **I'll** show you **pain!** "

"By my observation, they've already done damage to you." Zane had noticed her charred hair, which was no doubt, the work of Kai. "If you're wise, you will let us out of here and return the machine."

She scoffed and started twirling her hair. "What machine? I don't like to play around with cheap toys. Especially when they're made by HUMANS."

"Again with the whole ' humans are a lesser species!'" Jay shouted. "I don't get your problem with us, and I never will! So quit acting dumb and handover the machine!"

"Oh, now I remember. Is this the one?" she snapped her fingers, and a puff of smoke appeared and faded in a blink of an eye. On the ground was a bazooka like cannon, with a glass container connected on top. She picked it up from the ground and spoke. "This one is actually fun to play with, if you know how to use it."

Not waiting for an answer, Harionago walked over to the shrine and took a candle to light her way. She walked to a cell across from theirs, and reached into her boot to pull out a small key. After unlocking the cell, she walked in and after a few moments, came out with a small cage filled with rainbow colored lights. With a wicked smile on her face, she placed the cage on the ground in front of them and started up the machine.

Small cries were heard from it, as a bright light shot out and engulfed the cage. As time went on, the glass container started filling up with a multicolored liquid. She stopped it when it was a quarter full, and unattainable from the device. She dipped her hair, and for a moment, it glowed before it died down, revealing her healed thorn tipped hair.

"What just happened?!" Nya demanded.

"I don't have time to explain." Harionago bucked their demands to know what had happened, as she set the device down and pulled a rolled up scroll from the folds of her jumpsuit. After setting the container into the empty cell, she stuck it on top of the destroyed image on the shrine, to reveal a newer, yet poorly drawn Seraphina. Giving a chuckle, she backed up and said, "Time for a test run."

Pulling back her hair, she whipped it at the picture. The results were deep cuts, specifically aimed at Seraphina's neck, head, and heart. Harionago let out a cackle that gave the prisoners a great chill than before. "This is perfect," she spoke. "I can't wait to do this to the real one."

Leaving them opened mouth and eyes widened, she walked out of sight and left the sound of a metal door slam. The second she left, they frantically used their powers and weapons to try and break the bars, floors, and surrounding walls. Everything they threw was merely absorbed or had no effect.

"This is bad, this is very bad! We're gonna die, she's gonna drain us of our powers, hurt Maria, and help Onryō rule the world!"

"Fear not," Zane said in a comforting tone. "We must place our hope in our brothers."

"Zane has a point. Maybe things aren't as bad as we're imagining them to be. Maybe Lloyd, Kai, and Cole are on their way down here now to save us."

* * *

"Somebody save us!" Kai screamed, as he dragged his limp friends on his back all about the first floor. He kept trying to escape the ōmukade as best as he could, but it was too fast. This beast proved its strength by enduring the fireballs Kai had thrown at it. It tempted him to drop Lloyd and Cole so he could live, but he knew better.

"Oh hey, Kai," Cole spoke in a false cheery tone, "here's a thought. How about you summon your armor?!"

"But I can't! I don't know how, it's hard!"

"Well, think of it this way. We're about to be eaten by a giant bug, our friends are still in here with that she demon, and we left Maria with **Dareth**. Lives are at stake here!"

"I'm trying but I can't just-"

"Kai, over there!"

He looked to where Lloyd was struggling to point, and noticed two tall doors not far from them. With every ounce of energy left within him, he sprinted towards the doors. Heart pounding and sweat dripping down his face, he jumped and forced the three of them into the room. They landed hard, but Kai wasted no time and quickly got up from the dog pile. The centipede was a mere few inches away, as he slammed the door in its face!

Everything fell silent on the other side, and with that silence came a trio of relieved breathes.

"Well, that was intense," Lloyd stated the obvious and tried standing up. "Hey, I think the numbness is wearing off. I can kinda feel my legs again."

"Hey, me too!" Cole also started getting up with wobbly legs, but was gaining his balance. "I can feel it, I'm gonna be oka-" He was cutoff as he fell through the hole he failed to notice, in the floorboards. Without giving them a chance to react, he called up, "Guys! Guys, get down here!"

Cautiously, they did as asked of them and hopped down. They landed onto a cold, stone floor, and stood up to see Cole standing on the other side of their friends through cell bars. Overjoyed, they ran to them and finally smiled after although hey been through.

"You're all okay!" Kai spoke, while hold his sister's hands through the bars.

"So are you guys! I never lost hope for one second!" Jay's remark got a look from Nya and Zane who knew the truth. "But we can't get out, the cell is made of vengestone or something like that. It feels like it, but different."

Zane's eyes lit up, as an idea popped into his head. "I know, maybe we can combine our powers and overpower the vengestone."

"Good idea," Cole cracked his knuckles and got into position. "Okay, I'm ready."

"Me too," Kai said, with his fists ablaze. "How about you, Lloyd? Are you ready?" There was no answer. "Uhhh, Lloyd?"

Everyone looked down to see their leader kneeling and holding the forsaken cage. He looked closely inside as the light died down, revealing thin, humanoid creatures inside that were lying down in exhaustion. There were at least of dozen of them, all different colors, but all of them in pain. Lloyd suddenly felt a pain go through his head, a bright light flashed in his eyes. For a moment he saw her, she was smiling and looked like she was about to speak as she opened her mouth and-

"Lloyd?"

His head snapped back to his teammates, who were giving him confused looks as to what was going on. Kai kneeled down next to him and put an arm on his shoulder. "Dude, are you okay? You're…you know," he pointed to his eyes.

Lloyd gently wiped a hand over his own eyes, and felt the slippery, wet texture of tears. Upon realizing this, he wiped them away furiously and cleared his throat. "I'm fine. I just…wanna know what happened to these little guys," he asked while holding up the cage.

"Oh, well Harionago used the machine she stole on those things and whatever she drained from them, healed her hair," Nya explained.

Kai aimed his firey fists at the cage. "Well if those things helped her, then they should be destroyed."

"NO!" Lloyd slapped his hands away and held the cage tightly to him. He lightened up under the looks of his surprised team. "I'm sorry. But they're in pain. They look so weak and scared, I have to help them."

"Well, Harionago did leave the container in that cell over-"

The sudden crackling of wood interrupted the blue ninja, and made everyone look up in horror. A sudden clatter of wood and dust entered the scene, making the ninja cough and try to fan away the chocking dust. They opened their eyes and let out a yell, a perfect greeting for the ōmukade! It looked around for a brief moment and chattered away, until it got its meal in its line of sight.

Forcing itself through the cramped space, it inched closer and closer with its pincers bared, ready to gobble them up. Overcoming their shock, the ninja quickly combined their powers and focused on the lock of the cell. They kept trying and trying, as the antenna of the beastly bug could be felt crawling up their backs. With a spark of light, the lock popped off, freeing the imprisoned ninja.

Without hesitation, they quickly used their airjitzu to fly up through the hole and onto stable ground. They took a head count, one, two, three, four and….five?! Lloyd was no where in sight, and to their dismay, a satisfied screech came from down below. They looked into the hole, but couldn't see a thing due to the centipede's huge size.

"Lloyd?" Cole called down. "Are you down okay down there? Say something!"

It was the ōmukade that responded to Cole, by looking up with a shred of green cloth stuck to its pincers.

The ninja gasped, some had tears leak out from their eyes. Kai had felt a burning pain in his chest. He was gone….but he promised to protect Lloyd, and he just broke it. His breathing got sharper and quicker, as tears furiously spilled from his eyes. His gem started glowing brighter than it ever did as his voice filled with anger. "You, you're going to pay. WITH YOUR LIFE!"

With another crash of the floor, the red shogun armor pinned the bug down by merely standing on it. It wriggled and squirmed furiously to break free of this grasp, this pain. With a glare, Kai raised his sword high above his head and aimed at its heart. "Say hi to the oni for me!" And he trusted it down.

A soft squeal escaped it mouth as the sword went through. The bulging eyes of the bug shut as it started dissolving into particles. Down and down it went, into a hole of darkness. It closed up and left behind a green cloth in its place.

* * *

The remaining five ninja walked out of the mansion, into the moonlight of the night. They were still shaken up and had depressed at what had happened. Kai had lead them out as he held onto the cloth left behind. His only possession of his friend, no. His _brother._

He stopped and took a breath, turning back to face them he spoke quietly. "Lloyd...is in a better place now. I know this is hard,but think for a second. It was hard for him to accept that his dad was gone, but we helped him through it. That's happening to us now, but we can help each other through this."

Their heads lowered in thought, sniffling gasps could be heard softly. "But he's not gone. A part of him is in us, just as much as parts of us now rest within him forever. We will never forget him, because even though he's gone in body, he's still with us now in spirit. Because we are one.

"And I personally, will never forget how he taught me to be happy with what I am. I was never meant to be the green ninja,but I became something better. I became his brother, and that's good enough for me. It always will be."

Kai's voiced weakened with every word, until he stopped completely. He held his face in his hands and let it out. 'I will fight for you, Lloyd,' he thought. 'I promise. Whenever I use my gem, I'll think of you.'

"Don't stop now. You were getting to the good parts about me!"

They all snapped up and sure enough, Lloyd was standing behind Kai, with the cage and glass container in his arms. In unison, they let out a heartbreaking scream.

"LLOYD!"

Tearfully, they hugged him tightly and wouldn't let go. They almost got him off balance, but finally released him and started wiping away tears.

"How are you alive?!" Jay screamed, while playfully shaking him. He was about to get an answer when he cut him off, and pulled his hands back in disgust. "Eeeewww! Dude, did you _pass through_ it?"

"Gross! No, no, no, it never ate me. I ran back to get the container and got scratched by that thing." He turned around to show a big scratch on his back, and his ripped gi. Mostly it was remains from the oni attack, but what they didn't know wouldn't hurt them.

"So then, what happened?"

"I started throwing the bones of this skeleton that I found in the cell, which I feel sorry for, and it slowed down and started eating them. Then I heard a crash and got caught under the debris of the floor, but I saved myself with my energy shield. It took me a while to get out, and then you guys were saying nice things about me, so I decided to surprise you."

"Well, it's good to have you back, Lloyd." Kai pulled him into another hug and looked down at the cage in his arm. "Are you still going to help these things?"

"Oh, yeah. Give me a sec." He put the cage down and focused a small beam of energy on the lock, to have it pop off immediately. Taking the glass container, he poured it into the cage, until the little guys absorbed it all up, like a sponge. In a burst of energy, they all flew out and hovered around Lloyd.

Cooing and humming, they showered him with little kisses that tickled him. He laughed at this, and felt a cool sensation running down his back.

"Lloyd," Zane spoke with slight fear and awe in his voice, "your back is healed."

He looked over his shoulder to prove Zane right. His back had healed, even his scar from the oni attack had faded away! He smiled at his team who smiled right back.

"Well, what do you know?" Cole spoke while holding his hand out to the little creatures. "These little guys have healing powers."

"Fairies," Lloyd corrected him. They all looked at him with questioning looks. "I'm pretty sure they're fairies. And, I think we have something else for them to heal."

* * *

"Are we sure she's not going to be mad at us for leaving her alone, with _Dareth_?"

"Relax, Jay," Nya assured him as the ninja walked up to the bridge door. "Maybe they got along."

Her theory was confirmed, as they walked into the room. Maria and Dareth slumped back in their chairs, eating puff pot stickers. They stared up at the screen as it played the credits of a Starfarer movie.

"I liked the ending," Maria began, "but I don't think the Imperial Sludge scene was faithful to the issue."

"Oh, I feel you sister," Dareth said. "But the way he spoke his lines with emotion, it was more present in this movie than the…uhhh…what number is this?"

"This was our…fourth movie."

"Ahem." The two turned back to see the ninja, with slightly weirded out looks on their faces.

"You're back!" They spoke in unison, but Dareth broke it by getting up and stretching.

"Well, this was fun. I'll see you later, pink lady!" He walked out the door, but stopped and turned back for a moment. "Oh, and we're still on for Day of the Departed, right?"

"You bet, brown ninja!" She gave him a wink and a wave goodbye as he left the room. Maria looked back at the ninja who were showing signs of being creeped out. "So how was the mission?"

"We'll explain later," Lloyd said as he walked over to her. "First things first, hold out your sprain."

Without questioning him, she held out her splinted wrist. He pulled back the folds of his gi, allowing a fairy to fly out. It flew towards the pink ninja, who was in complete awe, and landed on her wrist. It gently rubbed it and flew away, out the door and into the night sky.

"Umm, that was cool and all, but what was the point?"

Lloyd started unwrapped the splint around her wrist. She was about to protest, but was stopped at a cool feeling that spread throughout it. He held it up to her face, which beaches opened mouthed and wide eyed at the sight of it. It was normal, as though it never had any damage inflicted upon it.

"Okay, now I'm impressed! You gotta tell me what happened on the mission!" Her pleas got a laugh from the ninja.

Lloyd put his hands in surrender, as they gathered around the wooden island to tell the tale. "Alright, we'll talk. Now, we were flying far from the bounty, and finally came across what would be known as, 'Harionago's House Of Horrors….'"

* * *

 **In The Dying Kingdom:**

"Harionago, you have failed me!" Onryō bellowed, with a slight shake in his voice. It was only him and her, he needed to inform her before he fell into slumber again. "You failed you're mission to bring back essence of Yōsei. What's your reasoning?"

"My king," she spoke with pleaded eyes, "I shamed myself with my actions. I didn't think they could escape the ōmukade, and I only wanted to see if I could catch more Yōsei. I acted without thought, they angered me to do this. They insulted your title!"

"Very well," he spoke. "No harm shall come to you, but be warned. Another incident like this, and your base will be destroyed."

She cringed at the mention of this. 'He can't be serious!' she thought to herself. 'That's my home, my army's souls rest there!' Without a word, she simply nodded.

"You are excused." Onryō started to let out a yawn, and slowly shut his giant yellow eyes peacefully. Harionago was left in the the darkness, cursing those meddlesome humans.

"Sleep peacefully, humans," she whispered to herself. "You too, Seraphina. For one day, I'll be by Onryō's side. And all you'll be doing is watching in pain from above as we lay waste to life itself!"

* * *

 **Farewell my friends for now.**

 **Until then, God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good.**


	14. 13: Day Of The Departed

**Disclaimer: I don't own Ninjago, if I did then we would have a new episode every day!**

 **I'm not dead! Day of the Departed was so good, I love the villains return, it made me laugh. It was perfect for Halloween weekend, so thank you Hageman bros!**

 **Now I've been thinking and thinking on how I should do this chapter, and I kinda suck at the swift changes of point of views. So I thought, since I promised a foreshadowing of what is to come after this chapter, and we didn't see much of our favorite brown ninja, this chapter should be about the newest odd couple! That's right, I made a Dareth and Maria chapter! Don't worry, I'm starting to get better at swift point of view changes, so you'll be seeing chapters like that soon. So I hope I do justice to this chapter.**

 **Now let's kick it!**

* * *

 **Chapter 13: Day Of The Departed**

The sun was beating down faster and faster in the desert. Everything seemed to pass by slowly, which is common when you're far away from the excitement and liveliness of New Ninjago City. Especially today, today was when time mattered the most. Today, time was so precious. Today, time was running out.

Then, a shadow flew in the sunset's rays of light and landed with cloud of sand. It was Kai, pushing the speed on his raider bike as he drove over slopes of sand. His voice was heard over the connected speakers of the vehicles.

"Move, move, move!" he said. "We're running out of time, pick up the pace!"

Close behind him, Cole was driving the Rock Roader. As he jumped over a high slope, he continued on with Kai's statement. "Yes ninja, it's up to us to save the day! Again."

Nya and Zane zoomed behind them, forming a perfect diamond shape to break the wind that pushed them back. "Roger that Kai," Nya's voice spoke. "Zane, do you have a read?"

"It may be too late," he replied with worry in his voice, " unless we break all speed limits. Increase velocity!"

His unseen compatible other P.I.X.A.L, was heard. "Already on it." To prove her work, the Titanium Ninja Tumbler was on the tails of the two raider bikes. The city could be seen, but to be reached in time, was the real issue.

Wu's voice came on, with the expectation of the Super Sonic Raider. A visual of him popped on the screen, before the two ninja inside. "Ninja, I've reached the rendezvous point. Where are you?"

"The museum is still five clicks away!" Maria replied from the seat behind Lloyd.

"Don't worry, we're on our way!" he assured both of them. At that time, the shadow of the Super Sonic Raider Jet flew over them.

"Look up kids! Jay to save day!" The blue ninja swerved over them, enjoying his time with the jet. "Race you there, Lloyd!"

"I still don't understand how **you** got the Super Sonic Raider Jet."

"Uh, caused I called dibs," Jay answered as though it was the simplest question ever. "Guy who calls dibs first gets it. Right, Cole?" There was no answer, it gave him fear as he continued to speak to the silence.

"Right, Cole? Cole?" Worry overcoming him, he whipped the jet around and raced back to his teammate. "Let me go get him!" he pleaded. "He's drifting off again!"

The Rock Roader started swerving out of control, as his hands went through the steering wheel. "No. No!" The fading ghost ninja cried, as he looked at what was left of his hands. "Come back. Come- No!" But it was too late, he could see the sun get closer and closer. He was flying up after accidentally driving up a huge rock, and he was headed for Jay.

"Cole, look out!" Just barely, Jay had managed to slip under Cole, unharmed.

Now back in control, Cole had landed safely on the ground. "S-sorry, Jay."

He sighed as he flew over the team again. "I know _you're_ a ghost, but _I'm_ still in the living world, and I'd kinda like to keep it that way."

Wu's voice cut through the aftershock of that moment. "Ninja, time is of the essence!"

"He's right," Cole spoke with confidence growing. "Engage!"

Lloyd took his role as leader. "We have one last shot if we wanna make it. Combine for maximum impact!"

Nya and Kai drove their bikes to the sides the Raider. When they got close enough, the three of them connected into one.

"Locked!"

"Loaded!"

"And jet speed reporting for duty, sir!" The jet landed on top of the Raider, forming one huge vehicle. It was now or never, as Lloyd gave the words that would determine if they beat time or not.

"Fire all engines!"

* * *

Views of the city went by in a blur, everything around them was slowed down. Real time came back into view as they screeched to halt in front of the Ninjago Museum of History. They all hopped out of their rides, as Jay spoke what they were all thinking.

"Master Wu, are we too late?"

"There may yet be time," he replied. He pointed up at the moon, that continued to rise in the darkening sky. The ninja wasted no time and ran up the steps. With six of them using spinjitzu, they hurried into the museum. Misako, Wu, and Maria ran close behind them as they went into the gift shop.

It was tense, only a few lanterns were left, and they were **expensive**. Only a few seconds left, and in that time, they rushed to pool together their money. They finally gathered enough cash, and practically tossed the lanterns at the cashier. He caught them and was startled by the ninja, as they tried to catch their breath, and eyed him to hurry up.

"Uhhh, will you be paying with cash or credit?" He asked with a hint of fear in his voice. He ducked beneath the counter and slowly peeked over, as Kai had slammed the money down.

"Cash! Now hurry up!"

Frantically, he took it and checked it over if change was needed. He shook under the glares of the ninja, and whimpered as he could feel them getting closer, angrier. The money totaled up to an exact amount for their purchase, which gave him a chance to put it in the register and hand them back their lanterns.

Their glares reverted to smiling faces, as they walked out together with a big, "Thank you!" As the last of them walked out of the shop, the cashier closed up the gift shop as quickly as possible. They had done it. They beat the odds.

"Mission accomplished," Jay said as they exited.

Lloyd held up his lantern and smiled. "Good thing we got to the gift shop before it closed."

"Yes," Zane agreed. "A Day of the Departed celebration is incomplete without a Day of the Departed lantern."

"Ooh, this is my favorite holiday!" Nya gushed. She stopped in front of a rack of lanterns and gazed at them with big eyes. "I love all the lights!"

"And the costumes," Kai spoke as a group of costumed kids walked in.

"And the candy!" Jay's eyes were locked onto one child that had a bag of candy open. "Hit me kid!" In response, a piece of candy was thrown at him, which he successfully caught with his mouth. "Best day of the year!"

The ninja walked over to Wu and Misako, who were holding their own lanterns. "Yes, enjoy the fun and festivities," Wu spoke, "but never lose sight of the true meaning of the Day of the Departed. Today is a day of remembrance. We light lanterns to remember our ancestors, and to settle our debts."

"Yeah, got it, got it," Jay said quickly. "Lanterns, ancestors, debts, but candy too, right?"

"The ninja! The Master Wu!" A familiar voice called out. From behind them came Dr. Saunders, with his arms up as he approached them.

Wu began to speak. "Dr. Saunders- "

"Oh, please. We are all friends, you must call me by my first name, yes? Sander, yes?"

Kai whispered to Nya in disbelief. "Dr. Sander Saunders?"

Said person heard this, but showed no signs of taking offense. "At your service! I am so pleased to be seeing you at this now. We are opening our new exhibit! Come, you see, come!" He led them down a hall and made his way to a pair of doors. They burst through them, allowing them to get a good look at the exhibit.

"Might I be presenting, 'The Hall of Villainy!'"

It was a simple room with mannequins of past was enough to for the crew to let out a few "wows." They walked by what was set up, Saunders sounded off everyone they passed.

"Cryptor!"

"A plastic mannequin."

"Kozu!"

"Uncanny!"

"Chen!"

"Memories…"

"Samukai!"

"Is he looking at me?" Jay questioned, as the red eyes of the mannequin locked onto him.

"Maybe from the past," Wu assured him. He glanced at a figure of his former pupil and sighed.

"And Morro!" Saunders finished. He then walked over to a table, bearing a rolled out scroll of moon phases. "And checking this out! We don't just open on Day of the Departed, it's Day of the Departed lunar eclipse! A special eclipse!"

"The rarest yin yang eclipse," Wu said.

"Oh, poetic is it not? Scary holiday, scary exhibit, scary moon. There is magic in the air! Boogely, boogely!" Saunders attempt to scare them only got a few soft chuckles instead. They all turned back and got another look at the exhibit.

"It's, every villain we ever faced," Kai said softly.(A/N: I'm not putting in Cole's lines at this point, since they probably stopped hearing and seeing him. This story is in a bit of a different pov, please don't hate me for this.)

"No, there are many more to unpack," Dr. Saunders corrected. "Overlord, Golden Master, all the ones who tried to destroy you. Exciting!"

"Uh, yeah. Exciting," Jay dead panned.

"As we continue on with the tour, you can see smaller exhibits of villains and their weapons. You can also see that our _Legends Lost In Time_ exhibit is almost complete. We learned new and different things about the statues, the artifacts, and the pretty painted lady!"

Everyone's eyes widened slightly at this, they had to get the information out of him. Maria stepped forward and said, "Dr. Saunders, can you tell me what you know about the glass clock?"

"Oh, that? We learned that it belonged to the pretty painted lady. We found a scroll that had her holding it, and she had seven colored dots around her. Very interesting, yes?"

She sighed and gave a nod. Nothing new about that. Lloyd gave it a try and asked, "Well, do you know if the painted lady was with someone? Maybe she had allies or something?"

Sanders gave it a moment of thought, and replied with a short "no."

"Did you find _anything_ interesting about the painted lady or the clock?" Kai asked with slight annoyance.

Saunders just shook his head, making the three groan. The curator suddenly squinted his eyes at them, and leaned in to get a better look at them. Lloyd, Kai, and Maria leaned back in disturbance, until he finally spoke. "Something seems different about the three of you, something not usual. Something that almost looks, **mythical.** "

They quickly covered their "mythical" spots and forced a smile. They nervously chuckled as they tried thinking of a clever excuse, when Nya interrupted the tension. "Look at that!" She ran past them all and stopped in front of a glass case and a painting of Sensei Yang. Inside the case was an unusual weapon. "Cool!"

They all followed to where she ran, and Saunders began to focus on the weapon instead. "You have a good eye, Nya. The yin blade belonged to Sensei Yang, it is said to possess much dark magic."

"What was this dark magic capable of, Dr. Saunders?" asked Zane.

"If certain conditions are met, it could bring back souls of the departed. It also had the power to grant immortality, but with a price. Plus, it's very sharp and can be dangerous in the wrong hands." He knocked on the glass case and spoke. "Which is why it's sealed in this case made of clear stone, the hardest substance known to human. Impenetrable by any living being."

A soft ringing was heard, Saunders pulled out his pocket watch and gasped. "Oh my! It's later than I thought, the concert will be starting soon! Come, come let's get going," he ushered them out. "We can't waste anymore time in here, I know you all must have plans."

* * *

"Thank you so much for such an informative tour, Dr. Saunders." Wu shook the curator's hand and turned back to his pupils as Saunders left. "Ninja, at the eclipse's peak, we will return here for the concert. But first, we must go forth and honor those who we've lost. Those who are departed."

They walked down the steps and started getting into their vehicles, with the exception of Maria. Lloyd noticed this and called out, "Hey, Maria." She stopped and turned to the sound of his voice. "You need a ride?"

"No thanks," she responded. "I'm helping Dareth host the concert. Don't you remember, silly? I need to head over now, you guys enjoy yourselves!" The pink ninja began running towards the bandstand, leaving the ninja with puzzled looks.

"Okay, I'm gonna say this **one** last time," Jay spoke. "How does someone like Maria-scratch that-how can _anyone_ tolerate Dareth and see him as a nice guy _and_ want to hang out with him without being bribed?"

"I don't know, Jay," Kai said aloud. "I thought the same thing when I first met you, and look where we are." He finished his sentence with a smirk and got a look from Jay. They started their engines and began driving towards their destinations. Kai and Nya waved goodbye before the team split up.

"See you guys soon!"

"Happy Day of the Departed everyone!"

* * *

Maria walked behind the bandstand to find Dareth giving the Royal Blacksmiths a "pep talk."

"Ah, kids. Always letting you down, that why _I_ don't have them!" He began to look sad as he whispered to himself. "And not cause Gayle keeps turning down my marriage proposals, even though I'd make an excellent provider." He noticed the musical group staring at him and quickly cleared his throat.

"Anyways, it's a good thing your manager is here to help you focus on more important things." He handed them each a staff, and took a lantern from one of the blacksmiths that stepped out to question him.

"What's more important than family?"

"A paying gig for a festival audience," Dareth responded in a matter of fact way. He raised his hand and caught a microphone that was tossed by a tech guy. "Have a good show, boys." The brown ninja was beginning to walk off, when he stopped and smiled at the sight of Maria.

"Maria! Glad you could make it, pink lady!" They pulled into a quick hug, when they finished, he handed her the microphone and signaled for another one to be thrown at him. "So, are you ready to shine on stage?"

"I guess," she shrugged as they walked to the stage wings. "Aren't we only introducing the group that's actually singing?"

"Trust me on this, we are the glue in this concert. If we didn't announce to the crowd who's performing, then everything would be lost. Now let's get out there!" He ran out on stage with Maria following. The crowd cheered loudly, for they knew the show was about to begin.

"Helllooo, Ninjago!" They spoke together and began with their lines they rehearsed.

"Hey, look at you!"

"Look at that once in a life time lunar eclipse, Dareth!"

"Oh, I see it. It's really happening!"

"How about a warm, Day of the Departed greeting for- THE ROYALLLL BLACKSMITHS?!" They stepped out to the side as the acapella group came out and started their routine. They began vocalizing and dancing to their catchy song, making Dareth dance while Maria clapped to the beat.

Everything was going so well, and everyone was having a great time, until…

" _Close the circle."_

A sharp pain quickly went through Maria's gut, resulting in her giving out a gasp and clutching her stomach. She bent over slightly as she felt something being drained from her, like her energy was fading and fast. For a brief second, she saw flashing green lights as she blinked. A strong hand was felt on her shoulder, it was Dareth with a face of concern.

"Hey, you feeling okay, Maria? You look kinda pale and you're all sweaty looking. Did you eat too many puffy pot stickers? I know from experience that they can be bad if you have too much, like when I was six-"

"No, no," she cut him off and stood upright. "I'm fine, it's just a little cold out here and it was so warm in the museum. I guess I'm having trouble adjusting to the temperatures."

It was enough to convince him, he continued to watch and dance. Maria gently hugged an arm around her waist and looked down. Her explanation was enough to convince Dareth, not herself.

* * *

Dr. Saunders had joined the two speakers on the stage wings, and clapped as the Royal Blacksmiths finished up their song. Dareth and Maria ran back out on cue and spoke to the cheering crowd.

"Royal Blacksmiths everybody! Aren't they fantastic, Maria?"

"They sure are, Dareth!"

"Speaking of fantastic, it's my duty as manager to remind you that there's _fantastic_ merch, available in the gift shop. Hats, CDs, mugs, show you're a **real** fan!"

"Now before our boys continue, we'd like to than you for coming. And I personally wanna thank you for getting into the _spirit_ of the night!" Maria gave a chuckle at her own pun.

"Oh, look at those costumes. Funny clowns, aliens, an astronaut." Dareth stopped and looked towards the back at a group dressed as stone warriors, marching toward the stage. "Wow, those stone warriors. So realistic!"

One of them that looked so much like Kozu, shouted and raised a fist. "Revenge will be mine!"

The voice sounded so evil, and had a tone that felt like he actually wanted to hurt them. Maria felt this and backed up, Dareth on the other, hand was oblivious to this. "Well, normally my guys don't take special requests. But it _is_ a special occasion, boys…"

The Royal Blacksmiths began winging it with the "request" and did a pretty good job. Throughout the cheering of the crowd, a growl of fury was heard and a loud THUD followed close behind. Dareth turned and got a better look of the stone army, his face to one of fear and horror. "Hey, that's- no costume!"

He tossed his mic and ran off the stage screaming, with Maria tagging along, worried for his safety. They ran toward the open museum doors, as Dareth tried to reason with them. "Can't we at least talk about it?!"

"Revenge!" Kozu replied.

"Okay, we're talking!"

"Destruction!"

"Talking is GOOD!"

"SLICING!"

Dareth kept screaming and running with all his might, the two of them both struggled to maintain their breath. The stone army was gaining on them more and more as they tried to escape.

"Hey, Dareth? Would you mind telling me why Kozu is after you?"

"It's because I controlled him! I controlled him and his army!"

"Well, can you do it again?"

"I'm sorry, pink lady!" He weeped. "But I can't! I don't have the- the Helmet of Shadows!" He shouted in realization, and quickly turned his course towards an empty hall. They got deeper and deeper into, until there was one door that had the words to freedom on it. It read:

 **Storage Closet**

They wasted no time and started searching. Boxes and boxes, drawers and drawers, but no helmet of shadows was to be found. "Helmet of shadows, where are you?" Dareth said aloud. "You control the stone warriors, so _I_ can control the stone warriors!"

Maria was leaning into a large crate as the pain in her gut came back. She fell backwards and clutched it tighter than before, her breathing became heavy and she felt herself getting weaker. An eerie blue light shined in her eyes, a voice echoed through her head.

" _Open the rift! Set me free!"_

"HEEELLLPPP!"

With that scream from her friend, she regained her senses and got up. She put on her neko-te and ran to the doorway where Dareth was cornered by the fearsome army. Her fists were positioned like a boxer's, she gave them the nastiest glare she could muster up. The army stopped in confusion at her actions, they showed even more confusion as she spoke.

"I don't care how tough you big bullies are! You're not going anywhere near Dareth if you're gonna hurt him! And if you wanna hurt him that much, then come at ME!"

With that challenge from her, they raised their swords and let out a battle cry. The shadows of the blades closed in on her, she extended her arms to block the attack….but it never came.

The warriors, except Kozu, stood tall and looked behind the pink ninja. Maria turned to where they looked, and saw Dareth..with the Helmet of Shadows! He had a cocky smile on as he gave out an order. "Security, 86 this guy!"

The warriors did as told and grab Kozu, charging him through the wall of the museum. On their second charge, all of them broke a hole in the wall as they crumbled to pieces. White spirits resembling them, flew up and disappeared. Just in time for Dr. Saunders to arrive on the scene, gasping in horror at the damage.

"My museum! What have you done?!"

Dareth, carrying the helmet, and Maria walked over to him with nervousness written all over their faces. The brown ninja gave a weak chuckle as he handed back the helmet, followed by a weak, "sorry."

* * *

Jay was walking up the steps of the museum with his team locked in sight. Boy, did he have a story to tell!

"Guys! I have **the** ghost story to end **all** ghost stories! You will never guess what just happened!"

"You battled the possessed mannequin of a mortal enemy?"

"Him and his goons tried to send you to the departed realm with magic blades?"

"But you defeated them first.."

"And saw their ghost disappear into the night."

"Oh, okay so you guessed," the blue ninja said in defeat. "Well, since you know so much, why were all those ghosts out here?"

"Because distracting you was part of Yang's plan." The six of them turned to see Wu walking up to them, with an eerie green glow behind him.

"And he had help," said Morro as he stepped into sight. Upon seeing him, the ninja pulled out their weapons and prepared to fight.

"Morro!"

"Ugh, any other villains wanna show up tonight?!"

"We stopped five, what's one more!?"

"No, put away your weapons!" Wu ordered. "He's here to help. Morro, tell them."

Morro explained the plan to the ninja who relaxed after Wu's approval. "Yang tricked Cole into helping him open rift to return to Ninjago."

"Cole, how'd he trick you?"

"Jay, Cole isn't here," Zane corrected him.

"Are you sure? He's been fading a lot lately, he's kinda easy to miss."

After letting that well known fact sink in, the six remain ninja gasped in horror. "WE FORGOT COLE!"

Wu pointed towards Destiny's Bounty. "To the bounty! They must be at the temple of the airjitzu master."

The ninja ran and wasted no time in setting sail. Right now, time was really running out. And it would take their brother if they were too late.

* * *

The winds that flew with the bounty, pushed them back as they tried desperately to reach the temple. Nya struggled to keep the ship steady while the rest of them tried to hold on tight, as they looked ahead over the side. Maria held her gut once more, as pain spread throughout her entire being. Truly, magic was in the air. A dark, powerful magic.

When all hope seemed lost, a voice echoed through the winds that guided them. It said, "Alone."

"Cole!" Nya shouted out. No doubt that voice was their brother's. It was true, as the roof of the temple came into their line of sight. Cole stood opposite from the fearsome, Sensei Yang in battle.

"We have to help him!" Kai shouted.

" I can't bring it any closer!" Nya said. "The wind's too- too strong!"

The bounty was pushed, almost flipped over, by the wind's force. From what they could see, Cole struggled in battle against Yang. Blows were thrown, many were dodged throughout the chaos. The rift above them grew smaller, making the winds around them grow stronger.

When all hope seemed lost, Cole's fists glowed with power. He used the opportunity to punch Sensei Yang, and break the Yin blade! The result seemed to affect the rift greatly, as the winds got even stronger.

"The rift is almost closed!"

It was almost over, but Cole was in no rush. He walked over to Yang and just stood in front of him. No attacks, no weapons were used. It just looked like a civil conversation in the midst of chaos.

"What is he doing?!" Jay cried out. "I-is he talking to Yang?!"

"The rift can not be opened again until the next yin yang eclipse," Wu warned.

"Which according to my calculations, won't happen for 3,721 years."

"Cole!" Kai shouted over the winds. "The rift! You gotta pass through the rift!"

The two ghosts just stood, giving worries to the ninja. The rift began to shrink more and more, forcing them to urge their friend once more.

"Cole! It's now or NEVER!"

Finally the black ninja used his airjitzu and went towards the rift. He stopped for a moment and was then suddenly flung into it. Did he make it? No one could tell as the rift closed in and released a blinding light. A high pitched whirring sound was heard and grew into an explosion, pushing the bounty with all its might.

"Brace yourselves!" Wu said as they all clung to the ship. "It's going to be a rough landing!"

* * *

After a bumpy landing on the ground of where Yang's temple previously resided, the ninja got off one by one.

"Is everyone alright?" Asked Misako.

"Nothing a tightening and few screws can't fix," Zane answered as he observed his arms.

Lloyd followed behind while holding his head. "I'm okay. Where's Cole?"

"Oh, no."

"Did he make it?"

"He was too late!" Jay said, and sounded close to the edge of sobbing. "He's gone forever! I'd give anything to have him back!" A few tears started to slip out from his eyes, he wiped it away as a voice spoke.

"Anything?"

"ANYTHING!"

"Even the Sonic Radar Jet?" Everyone turned around to see-

"Cole!" They ran towards him as he hopped of a rock. They quickly hugged him and gave him a little lift. He was back, and we mean **back**.

"You're not a ghost anymore!"

Nya grabbed the now human Cole and playful shook him. "You look good as new!"

"Yeah, pretty much. Thank you, Nya."

"Speaking of good as new…" Everyone's eyes fell where Kai pointed to. They all gave a soft gasp at the sight before them.

"The temple of the airjitzu master has been returned to its original condition." Said Wu.

"It's-it's beautiful." Zane spoke.

"You know," Cole said aloud, "that would be a pretty cool place for a ninja to train."

* * *

Not long after Cole finished his story, he cheered at his storytelling skills. "Woah-hoo-oo! And was I right or was I right?" He looked up from the campfire flames, and looked upon his friends faces. Among them were Jay's parents, his own father, and Dareth playing the air guitar to a soft melody only he and Maria could hear.

"Ugh, yes! You were right! Are you gonna retell this story every Day of the Departed from now on?" Jay whined.

"Only until you admit you didn't want to move in because you were scared it was haunted!" Cole shot back, getting a laugh from everyone.

"I wasn't scared! I was- cautious. Okay, fine. I was scared. And wrong. There's no more ghosts here!"

"Nope, no ghosts." Although he confirmed this with the rest of his team, Cole looked behind his shoulder and gave a wink. From the shadows of the temple, a light winked back at him. With the moon rising high in the sky, they all pulled out their lanterns and let them loose.

"Happy Day of the Departed!"

* * *

 **This is my longest chapter yet. I hope you guys liked my take on this, and I hope you had a great Halloween! My update schedule will continue on, but our next chapter might be a mini, just cause. Also, did you catch all the things I foreshadowed? Let me know what you found.**

 **Until then, God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good. Happy Halloween!**


	15. 14: Connecting

**Disclaimer: I don't own Ninjago…..so I have a sad life because of this.**

 **Hey guys! I hoped you all enjoyed my take on Day of the Departed, if you didn't that's ok. Now, this chapter is kinda like a mini, it's probably because it's straight to thee point anda few thousand words instead of a billion. Also one thing, all my chapters are NOT going to be fillers. So you're gonna have to keep an eye out for development in characters, story, stuff like that.**

 **Now let's dive in!**

* * *

 **Chapter 14: Connecting**

The sun shined harshly on the three on the bounty's deck. They formed a perfect triangle to boost the energy in and around them. They meditated and looked deep within themselves to control what proved to be a challenge.

"Focus, pupils. The power is in you, you must harness it."

"Nope! Not going to happen, because it's NOT WORKING!" Just like that, Kai got up from the exercise and walked away from Sensei and Lloyd.

"Kai, hold on!" Lloyd called out, and ran over to him. "It'll work, we just have to be patience and it'll come-"

"Forget it! We've been meditating for three hours and nothing has happened!" The fire ninja continued his rampage all the way to his room, where he flopped down on his bed and complained in his pillow. "We're never going to control these stupid gems. It's like they have a mind of their own!"

"Well, what'd you expect? These things are ancient, and they belonged to someone else before us. Maybe they DO have a mind of their own, and maybe they haven't gotten used to us."

Kai sat up and looked Lloyd in the eye. "Okay, so let's say that's true and they don't respond to us, even after all the trouble we went through to get them. WHO would they respond to better? And I mean **better** , as in activating the powers on command."

The green ninja scratched his chin as he went into deep thought. 'That's a hard one, we don't know how they actually work. But one person did for sure….'

"I got it!" His sudden outburst made Kai jump back a little. With a smile on his face, he began to explain. "Why not just ask the person who made them to help us?"

Kai raised an eyebrow. "Which would be…?"

"Seraphina!"

"Oh, that's a _great idea_ , Lloyd. Just one thing, and it's not that big of a problem, but she's DEAD," he finished by giving Lloyd a look.

"But Maria is the reincarnation of her, maybe she can activate them or try to connect with them. Sure she doesn't have her memories or powers, but maybe she can try and something will happen." Without waiting for a response, he turned walked out of the room and headed over to the girl's room. Kai followed close behind and began protesting.

"We don't have time to waste. Maybe she can't activate them, and we'll just end up goofing off while the enemy gets stronger."

They both now stood at the door, Lloyd was prepared to knock but stopped and turned his head to face Kai. "Look, I know it's a risk. But do _you_ have any better ideas?"

"Well, how about-"

 **BOOM!**

The two Ninja were pushed back against the wall by the unseen attack. Their eyes were wide open as they breathed heavily at the sight before them. The door was shattered into mere splinters before their feet, on the other side of the mess was Nya and Maria, one looking shocked while the other showed signs of embarrassment. Sounds of footsteps came rushing towards them.

Jay was the first to enter in, and was oblivious to the wreck behind him. "What's going on? We heard a explosion and we came as fast we could." Behind him, Zane and Cole slowed down as they looked at the scene. The Earth Ninja grabbed Jay by the shoulders and turned his whole body around as he continued to talk. "C'mon guys, say something! What the heck happened- WHOA MAMA!"

All five of them gaped until Zane broke the tension. "What-happened?"

The two female ninja turned and faced the other, instead of words, looks were exchanged in the conversation. None of them said a single word, until Maria stepped forward. "I-it was me," she whispered and lowered her head. "I did this."

"H-how?!" Cole demanded. "You're not _that_ strong to make a hole in the wall like _this_! Something like this could only be made with extreme strength or use of elemental powers!"

"T-that's what happened…..I used my powers."

The boys gave each other a look and bursted out laughing. With the feeling of her eyes getting her damp, Maria lowered her head even more. Nya put an arm around her before shouting at them, "What's so funny? She **did** use her powers! Maria was reaching for the door and just blew it up."

They laughed even harder to the point of them clutching their guts and falling to the ground. Kai managed to talk through laughs, "Good-good one guys! But no one gets their powers THAT easy! Unless you're the Green Ninja!" His joke got them laughing even harder, which rang out through Maria's head.

She lifted her head with tears streaming down her face. With all her might, she pointed at them and started to yell. "Now listen you-"

 **BOOM!**

A ball of pink energy shot out from her hand, and hit the wall to exactly where she pointed it. The ninja were quick to move out of they way, and had terrified looks on their faces at the damage. Through the newly made hole in the wall, Sensei sat in his room and looked prepared to drink a cup of tea. But with that explosion, his eyes were now wide and darted around the damaged area of where his wall was. Everyone just stayed silent in fear, until he opened his mouth slowly and whispered.

"Who did this?"

Sensing the anger in his voice, Zane tried to reason. "Sensei, this is all just a big misunderstanding. You see, I, along with Jay and Cole-"

"WHO did THIS?" he asked and gestured to the hole to get a specific answer.

"I did, Sensei."

All eyes were on Maria, who was shaking after giving her answer. Sensei started to walk towards her, he walked past all the other ninja who watched in concern for her. He stopped right in front of her and looked down a little due to a slight height difference. " _You?"_ was all he could say as he looked her in the eye.

"But I didn't mean to! I don't get what's going on, but ever since Day of the Departed, I've been feeling weird. I still remember how I felt so empty and when I woke up this morning I felt so energized. I don't like it though, it feels wrong and almost…evil."

Without saying a word, he put a hand on her forehead and closed his eyes. Everyone just stared at him in confusion as he did so, it was a little out of the blue, but unknown to them, it had a much bigger purpose. Sensei finally opened his eyes and pulled his hand back and sighed. He looked at her with eyes full of sympathy.

"Maria, the Yin blade contained dark magic, a dark magic that can fall under the category of spirit magic depending on how it's used. This type of magic borrows powers from spirits, and may end up killing them, which is what Sensei Yang almost did to you. When he opened that rift, he ended up draining power from the one part of the balance, the source of life itself, which means you."

Everyone's eyes went big as he said this, with the exception of Nya. She asked, "Hold on, if it drained Maria of her powers, then how come she's strong and can actually use them now?"

"I was about to explain," he assured her. "I believe that more power was taken than needed, which would result in her getting a sort of backlash. In other words, all that power that was locked up inside of her that was taken, came back after being used in a minimum sense compared to output of power she displayed on the walls."

"This is great!" Jay cheered. "Now that her powers are unleashed, we'll win the fight against evil!"

"Jay, you're right. Now I can go on more missions with you guys!"

They started to cheer, but were silenced with a smack on the head of a well known staff. "Do not cheer for this mistake," Sensei scolded them. "Maria's powers are unleashed prematurely, there's too much energy for her to control. We must fix this immediately. Lloyd."

"Y-yes, Sensei?" Asked Lloyd while still rubbing his head.

"I need you and Maria to come with me. Only you can fix this."

He stood up straight. "But, what are we going to do? What am _I_ going to do?"

Wu just turned and looked his nephew in the eye. With seriousness in his voice, he said, "You're going to drain the energy from her."

* * *

 **Meanwhile in The Dying Kingdom…..**

"Goryō, get up you lazy bum!"

Harionago pounded at the round stone that blocked the entrance of a small cave, which had engravings of Goryō's name, in an old language. After pounding and pounding, the stone was rolled to side, revealing an infuriated Goryō. After all that pounding she did, she swore there was another wrinkle on his face, or maybe two. He looked down on her and gave a deathly whisper.

"What do you want? Can't I get a time to relax and catch up on my beauty sleep?"

"Oh, please," she said as she admired herself, "you're not as fortunate as I. I merely had a hairstyle change when I became a demon. You on the other hand can't fix," she gestured to his appearance that showed little signs of humanity, "all **that** with beauty sleep. I bet Seraphina couldn't fix you either if she tried to have you reincarn-"

Harionago was cut off as Goryō grabbed her by her hair and pulled her up to his face. His breath felt hot on her as he spoke to her with eyes full of anger. "You will not speak of Seraphina unless it's to insult HER NAME, you should know better to speak to me like that! I'm ranked first in Onryō's guard, I could destroy you with a single word, but I can save if you tell me why you are here!"

"Th-the king is awake and-and he might break free!" She squeaked out.

Upon hearing this, he released in shock and ran towards the throne room. As he got closer and closer, he could hear the wicked laughs of joy from his comrades. He skidded into the entrance and smiled at the sight before him. Onryō's hand was outstretched from the bars of his cage, and glowed brightly with a huge ball of dark magic.

"My king!" Goryō shouted while running to him. "You're powers are back! This is a sign, a sign that Chaos is coming! We can win this war!"

A figure from the shadows illuminated himself slightly with his red eyes. He began to rub his paws together in delight. "Let's do it then, let's make the first strike of the war! We can destroy Seraphina's army while they still lack in numbers, take all the gems for ourselves, and listen to her scream in pain as she watches us destroy the ugly world she saw beauty in!"

"I'm with Kitsune," a sickly voice cackled. "Seraphina took everything from me! She'll pay for more than she bargained for by messing with ME!"

"She took everything from all of us!" A giant voice boomed out. "But now's our time to shine!"

"And it'll all happen because of our king, Onryō!" Harionago began to chant, "Long live, Onryō! Down with Seraphina!"

The five of them began to dance around the stone table, and continued on with their chant which drifted into song. "Long live, Onryō! Down with Seraphina! Down with the hybrids! Down with the humans! Long live, Onry-"

Their celebration was cut short with the sound of a groan. They looked up to see yellow eyes blink rapidly, and Onryō's powers began to vanish faster and faster. He tried to focus his vision on his guard as he spoke to them. "T-the girl, show me the girl!"

The demons wasted no time in using their powers on the table. Focusing hard on that wretched girl, an actual moving visual was brought up. It showed Seraphina standing next to an old human, and holding hands with a younger human cloaked in green. Onryō's army gasped as the humans spoke.

" _Does it hurt, Maria?"_

" _Oh, no. It's fine, it's a lot less painful compared to what happened to me on Day of the Departed. But what I wanna know is what we're gonna do with the excess energy."_

" _After Lloyd drains the energy, he can disperse it through out any living being. After all, spirit energy is similar to life. Spirit energy can be used to attack like regular energy, and therefore it can be regained the same way."_

" _Basically to sum up what Sensei said, whenever I drain energy from something, I don't kill it. I just take what they can't handle, but soon you and your soul will be able to handle the intensity. And you can get it back from literally ANYTHING, spirits are all around us."_

" _I think I get it, but I'm fine either way. It's still great to know I'm getting closer to using my powers, and hopefully I can learn how to use them without hurting anyone."_

The visual ended, their mouths were agape until Harionago spoke out. "Ooh that girl makes me so mad!" She began to speak in a high voice and tried to sound sweet as she imitated Maria, "'I can learn to use them without hurting anyone.' She's so stupid!"

"No," Onryō whispered breathily. "We are the ones who are stupid. We celebrated and forgot the connection that I share with Seraphina." His eyes began to droop as he gave out his final orders.

"Kitsune."

"Yes, my King?"

"I want you to go to the human world with your army and find at least one gem. You are to use it immediately and cause a g-great deal of pain to the humans. And Jorōgumo…"

"I'm listening, my King."

He started to speak with a shaky tone as he fell deeper into slumber. "While K-Kitsune serves as a distraction, you will r-raise your base and your army. Th-the rest of you will do the same, but look for new recruits and wandering spirits and hybrids to be used in our favor. We can't dwindle any-any longer…."

With his final demand hanging in the air, a loud thud was heard, signaling he had fallen back to sleep. They lowered their heads in respect, and slowly lifted them up as they looked to their superior, Goryō. Harionago walked over to him with confusion shining in her eyes. "Can we really pull this off before the humans get stronger?"

"Yes, but I have a better idea."

"Hold on, Goryō," Jorōgumo said. "Our king gave us direct orders, and just because you're ranked first doesn't mean YOU'RE king!"

"Enough!" He scolded her. "I didn't say we were going to ignore them, I just have a little idea to add on to his plan. Jorōgumo, do you remember where Seraphina's biggest ally is? And do you also remember your strongest soldier?"

"Y-yes, Goryō," she replied with a more serious tone. "Seraphina's ally resides in the mountains, and my greatest fighter survived the last war. He's made great progress in recovery, enough to get back on the battlefield."

"Then it's settled, you are to unleash HIM in the mountains. That should distract those humans while we continue with the rest of the plan." He stopped and chuckled to himself as he rubbed his hands together. "This is just perfect, everything is going to plan. But do you know the best part about it?"

The demons responded together. "No."

"This time, only we know about it. This time, we are creating something that Seraphina has no idea about. This time, we get to live."

* * *

 **So I did more of a villains perspective in this chapter. Did you catch everything I hinted at? Remember, I don't do fillers. But stay tuned for next chapter! Also if you guys have a question, put them in a review and I'll answer some in the next chapter.**

 **Until then, God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good.**


	16. 15: Mystic Mountain Madness (Part 1)

**Disclaimer: I don't own Ninjago. There I said it!**

 **HEY! I just wanna remind you I'll be taking questions you guys have about the story and answering them in the next chapter and so on. Just put them in the reviews and I'll answer as many as possible. And I'll take requests for things you want in the story, so put that in your reviews too.**

 **Now, let's a go!**

* * *

 **Chapter 15: Mystic Mountain Madness (Part 1)**

Sparks were flying in the air as Nya and Maria clashed. Nya's sword continued to thrust at the pink ninja, who struggled to keep up with her speed. Most of the time she dodged and ducked, it was then Maria caught the sword between her hands and gripped them with her neko-te. The two of them were in an intense struggle; one tried to pull it back as the other tried to force it and the opponent down.

"Good form, Maria!" Wu called out from the sidelines with the ninja and Misako. "Stand your ground!"

"You got this, Nya! Kick her butt!" Jay said as he clapped. The ninja gave him a look, causing him to stop cheering and defend his statement. "What? I just wanna make them both feel like winners."

They quickly turned back to the battle taking place, where Maria seemed to have the upper hand. They all leaned in as she prepared to fling Nya down to her defeat and…

She fell.

The sword was quickly pulled out from her; as a result, Maria fell onto to the ground which deemed Nya the winner. She sat up and rubbed her head, and stopped as a hand was offered to her.

"You did good," said Nya as she helped her up. "You're improving at a steady pace. Pretty soon you'll be beating up all the bad guys."

"Yeah, I guess so," Maria mumbled, looking down.

"Anything wrong?"

"It's just….I have powers now. Why can't I practice using them?"

"Patience is a strong virtue," Sensei said as he approached her. "We must have it within us to give ourselves hope, and we can't lose hope in a time like this."

 **BEEEP, BEEEP! BEEEP,BEEEP!**

An alarm in the bridge went off, causing everyone to rush in at once. With a push and a shove, they all squeezed in as Nya got to work on the monitor. Everyone gathered around as she pulled up a video chat request entitled "New Ninjago City Police Department." However, as soon as the chat was open, all that could be seen was a black screen.

They all exchanged looks as nothing changed from the big screen. It was Kai that broke the silence as he spoke with an annoyed tone. "Sis, are you sure you did this right? It looks like the screen's broken."

"Of course," she replied. "I know how to work a monitor, but the person on the other side might not."

Static began blaring through the speakers, flashes of colors bounced around the screen. Through it, a voice popped in and out. "Is…..stupid thing…..work you little…almost got it!" On the screen was now the face of the police commissioner, who got his screen just right and tried to act casual upon noticing the looks directed at him. "Ninja, we have a situation and I can't do this without you."

"What's up, commissioner?" Cole asked.

"First off, have any of you heard of Mystic Mountain?"

On cue, they snapped their heads toward Sensei for an answer. He gave a sigh and explained. "Mystic Mountain is said to be a mountain with unusual occurrences. The rumors say that it harbors warm seasons all year round, despite the fact that it lies close to the cold Wailing Alps."

"Sensei, that's impossible," Zane said baffled. "If it was close, then it should be affected by the surrounding temperatures."

"Yes, well they're still rumors," the commissioner spoke, gaining everyone's attention back. "But it doesn't stop those who are stupid enough to try and see the sight of it. But something's been harming hikers as of recent, so now we have to deal with _this._ "

The screen turned to a dozen of citizens lying in hospital beds, twitching and flinching as a reaction to nothing. They all had fear written on their faces, some were even in a fetal position for comfort. Mumbled words escape from their lips, giving chills as the ninja heard them.

"Webs, webs….th-they're everywhere. THEY'RE EVERYWHERE!"

"Don't touch, don't touch, don't touch, don't touch."

"I-I remember….HEART BEATS."

"What in the name of the First Spinjitzu Master is wrong with them?" Lloyd asked.

"We're not sure, but we already sent up a squad to prevent other victims of this. We you need you guys to head up there and put stop to this. Commissioner, out," were his final words as the screen turned off.

Nya wasted no time in setting a destination for Mystic Mountain, which would only take an hour or two to reach. Everyone else prepared their weapons, medical supplies, and began studying up on the rumors of Mystic Mountain. Throughout all the madness, only one thought was brought up in everyone's heads.

Something big was gonna go down.

* * *

Sensei and Misako stood by the ninja as they prepared to take off on their dragons, hoods down and eyes locked onto the eight mile high mountain in the distance. The faint wind gave a dramatic feel to them, as Sensei checked off they supplies they needed.

"Weapons?"

"Check," Kai said.

"Communicators?"

They held up wrists while still looking forward, and responded with a big, "Check."

"Kissed your mother goodbye?" Misako asked with a mischievous grin.

"Che-MOM!" Lloyd whined. "We talked about this, we don't do it in front of the others." He could hear the others holding in laughs. Jay, on the other hand was dying, and started to tease him in a sing song voice.

"Ha-ha! You have to kiss your mo-om!"

Lloyd could feel his face turning red, yet he pulled back his hood and leaned over as his mom walked up to him. He sat back up with his arms crossed and finished with an annoyed, "Check."

"Finally, and I'm thinking of certain blue ninja when I ask this, did everyone use the facilities?"

"Senseeeiii!" Jay whined. Laughter began once again, this time at him. "It was a one time thing, we swore to keep the memory of that moment buried. Can we leave now?!"

"Wait, you can't leave!"

Everyone turned as Maria ran towards them, carrying a leather brown messenger bag. She stopped beside them, holding the bag up with a smile on her face. "I packed a first aid along with sandwiches that I made for you guys. I don't want all of you coming back hungry and hurt."

Though it couldn't be seen, Lloyd gave her a smile. "That's thoughtful of you, but I think it would be best if you just put it on you for now. It'll be easier for you to keep track of it since the _seven_ of us are going on the mission."

The pink ninja's eyes grew big, a squealing gasp escaped her lips. She did as instructed and hopped on with Nya, putting her hood on and looking overly serious as she sat tall with her hands on her hips. She spoke in a deep tone that she deemed serious. "I'm ready."

With that said, they waved goodbye as they took off. Farther and farther into the distance and danger.

* * *

Far below the ninja was a scenery of lush greens and tall trees. Very unusual for a place up north and close to the Wailing Alps themselves. A fresh mountain wind breezed by them, with a crisp smell that reminded them of warm summers. If this is what they experienced from this height, then they could only imagine that the rumors of this place were true if they were to land.

"Smell that mountain air, guys!" Kai exclaimed. "Maybe the rumors are real, it looks like winter doesn't exist here. Are we sure we're close to the Wailing Alps?"

"Of course we are," Cole replied as though it was the simplest question ever asked. "We sailed the Bounty in the same general direction the Wailing Alps are in. That leaves us the conclusion that Mystic Mountain is-"

"HE'S UNCONSCIOUS! SOMEONE CATCH HIM!"

All eyes were on Nya as she pointed down to a falling Jay, falling far beyond her reach. Everyone dived down and tried to catch up with him, but he was getting closer and closer to the mountain's rocky surface. Cole gained the lead and reached a hand out to him and….

Caught him!

With him in grasp, they all landed and proceeded to wake him up. Kai shook him and gave him a few smacks with little results, causing worry among them. From splashed water to yelling in his ears, the smell of food to defibrillators, he wouldn't wake up.

"Ohhh, he's not waking up!" Maria cried out. "Is he…do you think he's-"

"NO!" Nya cut her off in anger. "I know what you're thinking, so don't you DARE say it! There has to be another reason."

"Is-is it nearby?" Lloyd whispered under his breath. It was loud enough for Kai, who stood beside him, to hear and look around with him. They way Jay passed out so suddenly, it was similar to how they experienced it the first time. Unexpected and hard to snap out of.

Exchanging a glance, the two stood together as they prepared to explain. Kai spoke up, "He's not dead, he's just trying to find… _it._ "

"Are the two of you implying that another gem is nearby?" Zane asked.

"Yes, Zane," Lloyd spoke, "there's no other explanation. Kai and I went through this before, so from here on out we shouldn't be surprised by this anymore. It's just part of the process."

In an instant, Cole dropped to his knees and placed his ear to the ground. Under the questioning looks of his team, he explained himself. "Something's vibrating below us, it's kinda strong and-"

His senses proved him right as an earthquake like rumble rang out from the ground. They looked down to see the earth splitting apart beneath their feet, causing them to instinctively fly their dragons away. But they barely made any distance between them and the cracking mountain, as a breeze came from the cracks, sucking them in. They all screamed as they were swallowed in the darkness of Mystic Mountain.

* * *

Jay shot open his eyes to darkness. He looked all around as he cried out, "Hellooo? Guys? Anybody?! Somebody!?"

But only his echoes responded to him.

"Okay, no need to panic. Maybe everything will be okay….even though it's really, really dark here. Can't I get some light in here?"

As though someone was listening to him, a soft glow appeared in front of him in the form of a blue gem. Giving out a soft gasp, he excitedly tried to "swim" in the darkness and reach out to it. He felt the smooth texture of it as he got closer and reached. "Almost….got it! Huh?"

He looked down at where his gem once was, to a white gloved hand that covered it, and held his hand with gentle pressure. Feeling no fear, he dared to look up at the person it belong to. It was a girl, with smooth, short raven hair that covered her right eye. While placing her free hand on his cheek, she leaned into his ear and whispered.

" _I found you, Peter."_

* * *

The ninja sat up, groaning from the…well, they didn't know what they were laying on at the moment. It felt squishy and moist, nothing that could be described as mud. A bright light from Kai's fist gave them sight once more, and was its sight to see. It was nothing you would expect to see in any old mountain.

Every inch of the place, from the bottom to the top, was covered in a disgusting brown green fungus. Mushrooms sprouted here and there, shoestring fungi hung from the top and looked ready to reach out and grab them. A rotting smell filled the air around them. One of the most peculiar things though, was that spiderwebs were strung in the cracks and crevices.

"This place is disgusting," Kai exclaimed. His head suddenly perked up as he looked around. "Hold on, where's Cole? And Jay?"

"Over here!" A voice called from the darkness. Kai shone the light on Cole, who kneeled beside a still unconscious Jay. The team walked over to the two with worried looks on their faces. Jay showed no signs of even the slightest movement on his face. Nya reached out her hand to his face and placed it on his cheek and-

" **NOOOO** **!"**

Everyone jumped back as Jay shot up screaming. Upon stopping, he panted hard and looked upon the faces of his friends. Realizing the fear and shock he tried explaining. "I saw my gem!"

Kai got in his face and started firing questions. "Where is it? What's it look like? Why'd you scream?"

"Well, I saw something weird. But that's not important! I saw my gem, it's like yours and Lloyd's but blue. Not bright blue, but more of a dark electric blue with a tint of periwinkle."

"Um, can we just say it's round and blue?" Maria asked.

"Well, I guess," Jay said with a shrug. "Why though?"

"Because it's over there!" She pointed in front of her to a blue gem, making everyone gasp at the sight of it. Without warning it started to crawl away, and fast.

"Hey, get back here!" Jay shot himself up and sprinted after it down a dark cave.

"Jay, hold on a second!" Lloyd called out to him. He ran after him with the others close on his tail.

Jay; along with Lloyd, Kai and Maria, were the first ones to get into the cave before it closed off. They looked back at what appeared to be fungi growing over the entry way. On instinct, they took out their respective weapons and sliced away. It was Zane on the other side, who noticed the effect of their attacks.

"Everyone, stop!" They did as asked. "The fungi continues to grow, I fear we may only make it worse if we continue."

"Well, can't Kai burn it or something?" Nya asked

"I'm afraid not. We're surrounded by fungi, we could harm ourselves."

"You guys work on that," Jay said from the other side, "and the four of us can find my gem."

Lloyd's leader instincts kicked in at this. "Whoa, hold on. I'm the leader of this team, and I say we find a way back to the others. You saw what happened to those hikers, we can't go in groups. It's way too risky."

" _CARDIMONA."_

The ninja tensed up at the deep growl the echoed around them.

"Wha-what was that?" Cole whimpered.

" _CARDIMONAAA!"_

In an instant, the ground beneath the four ninja began to move. It squeezed in and out, soon enough, it began to suck them in. The struggled and wriggled around to free themselves, with little success.

"What's going on over there?!" Nya asked with worry.

"We're being sucked down!" Maria responded.

"What!? No, you're not going to. I'm coming!"

"No way, sis!" Kai shouted. All of them were up to their necks, he ran out of breath as he spoke his last. "We'll be fine…you find another…another way t-to..us." By now, his eyes, along with the other three, had slipped slowly under the fungi.

They were gone.

* * *

"Jay? You okay, buddy?"

With a groan, Jay's eyes fluttered open to the faces of Lloyd, Kai and Maria. They all shared a breath of relief as he woke up. "You scared us there for a sec," Lloyd said.

"Where are we?" He asked sitting up. His eyes widened as his question was answered by the sight of the area. Giant, white egg sacs were stacked along the walls and even on top of each other. "Where did these come from?!"

"Oh, let's think about it," Kai said and began to count of the possibilities. "It could've been a chicken, or the Easter bunny. Oh, hold on. Maybe it was a GIANT SPIDER."

Jay's face fell immediately. "Okay, the spider one makes sense. And that's the bad part so let's get out of here NOW!" He tried running away from all this but never made any distance. He stopped and looked at Kai who had him by the collar.

"Jay, we can't just leave. We don't know what's going on, we'll get hurt if we just act without thinking."

Jay pushed Kai's hand away and shot back at him. "You're one to talk. You act without thinking all the time! Maybe you should try to put a brain in that head of yours instead of hot gas!"

The two of them got in each other's faces, ready to fight. Lloyd and Maria tried to pull them away from each other, when Maria said, "Hey, it's the gem!"

Everyone turned their heads towards the ground at the gem. "Finally!" Jay screamed. He picked it up and began to admire it. "This is the greatest moment of my life. Nothing can bring me down now!"

That's when the gem stretched out its hairy legs.

They gave a out shriek at the sight of this, as it continued to unfurl its legs and pincers. But they didn't belong the gem, they belonged to a young spider that latched itself with the gem. It was jus the right size for it to blend in, no wonder they couldn't see it before. It looked like it was a baby tarantula, if it wasn't for the large white abdomen.

"EWWWWW!" Maria shrieked out. She hid herself behind Lloyd and Kai, she was visibly shaking. "Kill it, it's so gross! I can't even look at it!"

"Okay, okay! I'll just rip it off," Jay assured her. But it was easier said than done.

He pulled and pulled, but it wouldn't let go. The red and green ninja joined the struggle, but it still held its ground. Reluctantly, Maria joined and pulled with them. With the sound of a large snap, they looked and saw they had separated the spider and gem.

It was then it squirmed furiously and screeched its heart out.

On cue, the sacs burst open like coffins. In perfect lines came more of the strange tarantula young, but they reached up to the ninja's thighs, in height. They surrounded them in one big circle, red eyes locked on them. All of them chattered away in anger at the harm they caused to their ally.

"Jay," Lloyd whispered, "give them back their friend."

On cue, released the spider which ran to the back of the army. "Okay, now what? We can't take on all of these guys, can we?"

"Yes, we can. It's only a few small spiders, we can just squish them and get out of here."

 **BOOM. BOOM,BOOM,BOOM!**

From the depths of the ground, giant, hairy legs shot up. They pulled up their owner which was none other than a giant, 20 foot tall tarantula. It had a red, tiger stripe pattern on its back, it's yellow eyes were like a humans, but had that bug eyed bulge. It raised up its head and let out a deep bellow of yells, and quickly snapped it back down to the ninja.

They all were shaking in fear, the rattle of their bones could be heard. Kai leaned over to Lloyd and asked, "Do you still think we can just squish them now?"

"I think this big guy is going to be doing all of the squishing."

* * *

 **Dun, dun, dunnnnnn! Our heroes are separate and facing terror. What will happen? Remember to ask any questions you may have and put them in the reviews, and give me feedback back on what you wanna see in the story.**

 **Translation: Cardimona- stomachache**

 **Until then, God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good.**


	17. 16: Mystic Mountain Madness (Part 2)

**Disclaimer: I don't own Ninjago, just the story and ocs.**

 **Hey, guys! It's been a long week for me since holiday season is coming. BUT, I have a valid reason as to why I'm late. My school thought it would be good to be early and have us study for exams now. So my homework tripled from what we usually get, I apologize for this. Also, no chapter this weekend since it takes me time to recover from Black Friday shopping. It's so vicious, people are like ANIMALS!**

 **Now then, shall we?**

* * *

 **Chapter 16: Mystic Mountain Madness (Part 2)**

The giant spider continued to stare down at four ninja that were encircled by an army of spiders. They stood still and didn't dare to move even the slightest in fear of an attack. Their eyes darted around for an exit, but the only one was blocked by their foe. This would be no easy task.

"Kai," Lloyd whispered as softly as he could, "how good are you at controlling your gem?"

"If you were watching me during training, you would know that I stink at it."

"C'mon Kai," Jay said, "your armor is the only thing that can destroy that….that THING in one blow. What'd you do to make it work before?"

"Well, I guess I-"

But he was cut off as the spider lunged at them. They were quick enough to jump out of the way, but fell onto the spider young, causing them to be dog piled by them. Three of them were quick to yell out, "NINJAGO!" A flurry of spiders were whipped around the area as the lights of the spinjitzu pierced the dark caves.

And all those spiders that were flung off them fell onto the helpless Maria.

She screamed and furiously tried to scratch them off with her neko-te, with no success. The ninja noticed this and quickly encircled her with spinjitzu, reducing all of them to a puff of smoke. When it was over, she stood shaking and her eye was twitching from the terror she just experienced. Lloyd tried to put a hand on her shoulder in comfort, but she jumped back in fear, and relaxed upon realizing the danger was gone.

"Oh, it's you guys," she let out a breath of relief and rolled her eyes up for a moment as she did so. Her eyes widen and she looked up slowly, letting out a shriek as she stared above them. They followed her gaze and gawked as the giant spider stared them down, ready to pounce on its prey. Instead, it closed it's eyes and from above fell more of the egg sacs.

"I-it's laying more just like that?!" Jay asked. "How?!"

"We can't stick around to find out," Lloyd replied. "Just follow me!" He lead them down the tunnel and made an abrupt stop as they had reached a dead end. Behind them, they could hear a roar behind them getting louder and louder.

"We're trapped!" Maria said with worry in her voice. "That thing's gonna get us!"

Kai stood tall and turned to face the approaching spider. "No, it won't. We can fight back and exterminate that bug!"

Jay gave a soft gasp. "You mean…you finally learned how to use your gem?"

"Well, not really. But we have each other, we stand together!"

"Kai's right," Lloyd said. He stood in front of them with his back turned. "We're a team, and we've been through so much together. We've beaten the odds as we faced snakes, the Overlord, nindroids, Anacondrai cultists, and ghosts."

Maria cleared her throat. "Not me. I'm kinda steering blind in situations like these since I'm still in training. But you still make a valid point, Lloyd!"

"Right, so why can't we fight a giant-" but he was cut off as he flew past them and into the fungi. He was unconscious and stuck as webbing was wrapped onto him.

The others turned to see the spider now faced them, prepared to fight.

"Hey!" Kai shouted at it. "No one does that to my friend!" In an instant, there was a flash of red, and revealed the shogun armor ready to fight. Kai lunged at him, the two were locked in battle and struggled to land a blow on the other.

On the sidelines, Jay and Maria tried to rip the webbing off of Lloyd, but they kept getting stuck themselves with their efforts. Through the struggle, Maria whipped back to see the spider had kai's sword locked between its pincers. They struggled and tried to fling the other off to defeat. Just like earlier when…

"Kai, no!" Maria screamed. "Don't fall for it, it's gonna-"

But it was too late. Kai was flung down on the ground, his armor was shattered as the spider bit down on his back. It clamped down on his gem and carried him by his arm.

"Hey, ugly!"Jay shouted, gaining it's attention. "Pick on someone your own size!" He shot a blast of lighting at it, only to have it glaring down on him in irritation. "Heh, heh. You're not gonna get mad about that, right?"

In response, it lunged at the two, missing them by a few inches, but successfully capturing Lloyd.

"NO!" the two of them yelled. They charged at the beast, weapons ready to deal damage, but were flung back by a powerful kick. Everything was fading to black as they caught at a glance at the scene before them.

A spider dragging their friends away, helpless and defenseless.

* * *

Cole, Zane and Nya were currently navigating their way through a dark tunnel, with the dim light given off by Zane being their guide. They had tried to reach the Bounty, but there was no signal from their deep position in the earth, as Zane concluded. All the tunnels were basically a maze, leading into open spaces or more tunnels that left them questioning themselves if they would ever find their friends again. The only difference was the smell got thicker and thicker in some areas, but it wasn't actually helpful in deciding where to go next.

"This is hopeless," Cole complained. "We're never gonna get out of here, let alone find the others. And I'm starving, why couldn't Maria be stuck with us instead?"

"Fear not, brother. We will find the others and the exit," Zane assured. "P.I.X.A.L. is picking up a strong heat signature down this way. This is much different than the other tunnels we traversed through, so maybe the others are down here, in safety and good health."

"Um, Zane," Nya spoke up, "I don't think you found Lloyd, Jay, Kai or Maria. I think you found something MUCH BIGGER." She pointed past them and at the sight of dozens of spider young, tearing away at the walls and ground of the mountain.

The three of them quickly hid to the side. They observed as they kept digging and digging, as though they were trying to find something. Finally, after a few minutes, a loud groan echoed throughout the area. The fungi on the ceiling shook, the ground below them felt softer and more moist.

"Gross!" Nya exclaimed. She lifted up a foot to have it drip with muddy colored liquid. "This place is nasty! We have to get out of here now!"

"Wait a moment, Nya," Zane said. He leaned in and observed the substance. After a brief moment, he pulled back in fear and said, "No, it can't be…. This place is…"

"What is it? What did I step in?"

"Nya, your foot and the ground is soaked with a mixture of hydrochloric acid, potassium chloride, and sodium chloride!"

"Zane," Cole interrupted, "we're ninja. Not chemists. What the heck does all that mean?"

"While fungi is already a decomposer, I fear it's being enhanced since it's soaked with gastric acid!"

"Gastric acid?!" Nya asked. "But that's-!"

"Stomach acid. And you pathetic humans were dumb enough to continue on. You should've run away when you had the chance," a voice rang out around them.

They turned to find the source, only to see an army of spiders were staring them down. A puff of smoke appeared in the center of the army, and from it emerged a figure who's back was turned to them. It was a she, for she had on a long black dress that was covered in a spiderweb style lace, highlighting her sickly thin figure. Her skin was a lavender purple and had short hair which was a dark teal that stuck close to her head, with the exception of two wavy face frames that hung above her shoulders ever so slightly.

Without turning the slightest she spoke calmly. "You really are idiots. It's so shameful for someone of my high ranking to deal with termites like you. I can't believe you didn't notice the signs, now all of you are trapped in the belly of the beast."

"What?!" Nya and Cole asked in unison. They then turned to the nindroid for answers.

"Zane, why didn't you tell us we were in the stomach of, of…of whatever this thing is?!" Cole asked.

Without saying a word, the woman answered them. "Because you're all idiots, that's why you didn't know. You know nothing about me and my colleges, my king, and you know nothing about Seraphina, yet you protect her. If you're going to throw your lives away, you should at least know _why_ you did it."

She started to walk away but stopped, and spoke. "I have just one last thing to say... Even though I can't do it just yet, destroying Seraphina will be the happiest moment of my life. Then you'll know how I've been feeling all these centuries, having everything taken from you in the blink of an eye."

With that said, she snapped her fingers and the spiders charged at the ninja. They tried to pile on top of them, but they used their spinjitzu and reduced them all to a puff of smoke. It was over before it really got started.

"Ha! Is that all? I've dealt with normal spiders and they were harder to squish than these!" Cole boasted.

"But where'd she go?" Nya asked. They all looked around but the woman just disappeared into thin air as it seemed. "That was too easy. How can we be sure this isn't a trap?"

"Maybe we just got a lucky break," Cole said with a shrug of his shoulders. "I mean, things have been intense for us, maybe the universe just decided to give us an easy break."

"But still, something feels off about this," she protested. She opened her mouth to speak once more, but had it grow at the sight of the beast behind her friends. "Guys," she whispered, "run away. NOW."

Instead they turned around slowly, and in an instant, they were covered in webbing. Nya shot a blast of water at its face, but it merely closed its eyes until the attack was over. Letting out a roar, it charged at her, running after her until she was trapped at a dead end. She turned with her sword in hand to possibly fight her way out of this.

But in her final moments, she was met with a flurry of webbing, suffocating her enough to slip into darkness.

* * *

Jay sat up groaning and held his head in pain. Spots clouded his vision and made it hard for him to see clearly. He shook his head and got a better look of his surroundings. Beside him was an unconscious pink ninja who he began to shake awake.

"Hey, Maria," he called to her. Becoming impatient, he grabbed her by the shoulders and shouted, "WAKE UP RIGHT NOW!"

Her eyes shot open and she let out a short scream. She began to relax upon noticing it was only Jay. As she released herself from his grip, she looked around and asked, "What happened? Where are the others?"

"I don't know," he answered and stood up, brushing off the dirt stuck to him. "But we gotta find them before something even worse happens to them and us."

"What could be worse than being trapped in here?" She asked as she stood with him. "As if being in here wasn't bad enough, we just had to have spiders crawling around looking for us and possibly the gems."

Something clicked in Jay's head, he immediately started searching his pockets with worry growing on his face as he found nothing. "No, no, no, no, NO! I forgot the gem! I must've dropped it when we were fighting and now it's lost!"

"It's not lost. It's on your wrist."

He looked down and there it was. On his right wrist was a rounded bracelet with wavy designs that encircled his gem. He stared at in an awe, in one second, he quickly snapped his head at Maria. "Why didn't you tell me before?!"

She had her hands up in defense. "I didn't know, I just noticed. It must've latched onto you during the struggle. Can't we focus on finding the others now?"

"Fine," he grumbled. "But only cause the others are in danger, I'll forget this incident. So, where did that spider thingy take them?" He asked while looking around.

"I dunno. Maybe there's a nest or something and it took them there?"

"But why? That thing's really just a stupid animal. Sure, it beat us, but the point is-" he stopped as he was facing Maria. He had caught a glimpse of a figure behind her that was waving at him.

It was the same girl he had seen in the dark place. She had on a floor-length, sleeveless, cyan dress with a lacy over skirt, and of course, long white gloves. With her one visible eye, she stared right at him and waved for him to follow. As though he was in a trance, he walked closed behind her, following her down from where they came from.

"Jay, where you going?" Maria asked. She had observed the whole thing and was completely creeped out at how he was staring at nothing. But she didn't really have a choice and followed where he went. "Jay," she called out as she struggled to catch up, "I really hope that wherever you're taking me won't get us both killed!"

* * *

After what felt like hours of walking, Maria had bumped into Jay as he abruptly stopped in the middle of a tunnel. He blinked as though he had awoken from a deep slumber and looked around. "Hey, where are we?"

"You don't know?" Maria asked. "I was following you. You looked like you knew where to go."

"But I don't even know where we are! I was just following that-" He was about to point at where the girl had stood, but she was gone. "That… That girl..."

"What girl? I didn't see anyone," she said. After a moment of thought, she pulled out a tightly wrapped sub sandwich from the tattered messenger bag and held it up to his face. "Eat this, you probably have low blood sugar and now you're seeing things."

He took it, ripped off the wrapping, and immediately gagged on the first bite. While he kept that bite in his mouth, he struggled to speak. "Hey, Maria? What's in this… _lovely_ sandwich?"

She turned her back towards him and shrugged. "Ya know, the usual. Horseradish, steamed carrots, crushed oysters, sausages, cow tongue, Munster cheese, and the most important part, Brussels sprouts."

Jay quickly put a hand to his mouth, he quickly looked around and chucked the sub as far as he could. He began spitting the demon sandwich residue from his mouth and nearly chocked in doing so.

 _ **HissssssssSSSSSSSSSS!**_

The two ninja stood up straight at the sound of sizzling close behind them. They looked over to where the sub had landed, only to find it dissolving into the ground while giving off slight steam. It had turned to brownish green color as it turned to mush and finally, into a liquid that soaked into the ground.

"Hey," Maria said in realization, "you threw away my sandwich? After all I did to make-OW!" She suddenly screamed in pain and held her foot, which also had steam start to come off of it. "What was that?"

Jay followed suit and fell on his back as both his feet got singed. The soles were black and the pain of burn was spreading. "Okay, I think we should start leaving!" He quickly took her arm and led her to where the girl he had seen wanted them to go.

With every step, the pain spread through both of them, but eased as a light was seen at the end of the tunnel. They finally made it and fell on their stomachs in relief and exhaustion. They sat up and noticed that something was different about this room. Every inch was strung in spider webs, but that's not what caught their eye.

In the center of all the webbing was a pinkish red orb, that pulsed gently as faint heartbeats could be heard. The room had no fungi anywhere in sight, not on the walls or the ground. It was perfectly safe, well, relatively safe considering the fact there was still a giant spider on the loose in here.

"Don't stand up," Maria said as she noticed Jay's attempt to stand. She rummaged through her bag and pulled out the first aid kit. Popping it open, she pulled out bandages and burn cream. "We gotta cover up our wounds or they'll only get worse."

Reluctantly, he played patient as she applied the cream to his feet and wrapped the bandages a little tighter than he wanted. 'Who was that girl?' He thought. 'And where's Lloyd when you need him to get you out of stuff like this?'

As if his prayers were answered, a voice called from above. "Jay, is that you?"

"Lloyd?" He asked overjoyed and practically jumped up. "Where are you buddy?"

"We're up here!" A blue light shined above them, illuminating the darkness and revealing Kai, Lloyd, Cole, Zane, who had lit up the way, and Nya. They were all stuck in cocoons that allowed their heads to pop out, and hung upside down from a giant web. "You gotta get us down from here!"

"Don't worry guys, we're coming!" he shouted up. Using his airjitzu, he pulled Maria up with him and the two latched onto the web. Maria began sawing away with the neko-te while Jay was able to locate Kai's sword on his back. No sooner than later, they were freed and landed gently with airjitzu.

Jay pulled Nya into a hug as he spoke. "We're so happy you're ok! It's crazy in here. Our feet started burning and my sandwich melted…. I just wanna go home now!"

"So, you've noticed the signs too?" Zane asked.

"What'd ya mean?" Maria questioned.

"Cole, Nya, and I were trying to find you guys. That's when the stomach acid started to appear. No sooner, we were captured by a giant spider and met with another one of Onryō's allies."

"That's what happened to us!" Kai exclaimed. "I tried to fight it, but it was smarter than I thought. Next thing I know, I'm in a cocoon next to an unconscious Lloyd and the blood started flowing to my head."

Jay held up a hand. "Wait a minute, was Onryō's ally a female? With a blue dress and black hair?"

"Actually, no," Cole answered. But how did you know it was a _she?_ "

"I was following Jay when he stopped and told me he was following some girl. But I think he's just suffering from the fumes."

"We're gonna get out of here," Lloyd assured. "I don't know how, but first we gotta destroy that spider. As long as it's still terrorizing people that come here, it must be destroyed."

"Here's a thought," a voice echoed around them, "how about I take my beloved, adopted son and return this place to normal?"

They all whipped out their weapons and got into fighting positions. Footsteps approached them, from the shadows was a figure who's face was masked in the darkness.

"That's her," Nya whispered. "That's the lady we ran into."

"Hey, lady!" Kai called out. "Why don't you grow a spine and show your face?"

"As you wish," she replied sweetly. She stepped forth to reveal her black lips that had one fang on the right side of her mouth. She had prominent cheekbones and crow's feet around two of her eyes that were shaded in a blue greenish color. She had a third eye, resting atop her forehead; highlighted by her parted wavy bangs.

"Ugh!" Jay exclaimed. "Forget it, you can go back in the dark!"

"Well, aren't you the charmer? I won't kill you for that since I have business to attended to. And don't worry, I'll take my child and grandchildren and return this place to its original glory."

Cole leaned over to Jay and whispered, "Considering how her 'child and grandchildren' looked, I'm afraid to see the husband/grandfather." They chuckled under their breath, but it was short lived as a rumble came from below.

Out popped spider young along with the giant spider. Instinctively, they went to the lady and rubbed against her like cats. "Oh, it's okay," she said to them in a baby voice, "they won't hurt you anymore. I'm so proud at how you sickened Seraphina's friend."

"My-my friend?" Maria asked. "You mean this mountain is living? And you were just killing it from the inside!?"

"I was, but now I'll make things better," she replied. She brought her fingers to her lips and whistled sharply. Just like Harionago, she was engulfed in a dark vortex below her and along with her army, disappeared from sight.

"Man, are all of Onryō's allies nut jobs?" Cole asked to no one in particular.

Behind them, they could feel the pulsing of heart beat. They turned as the orb had shined brighter and brighter, forcing away the webs with every beat. Eventually it pushed the ninja back with the pulsation, flinging them onto their backs.

"We have to leave now!" Lloyd ordered.

Jay got up and was about to follow the others as a voice called out, "It's this way, Peter." He turned to face the girl once more, signaling for him to follow down a steep tunnel. Something inside him told him to trust her, that she wouldn't wish any harm upon him.

Gathering up his courage, he shouted to the others. "Follow me! I know how to get out of here!"

They all stared at him in disbelief. But what other choice did they have? Maybe..he did know the way out. Lloyd walked up to him placed a hand on his shoulder as he spoke.

"Then save us."

* * *

It was a long shot, but the entrance from where they fell in could be seen. They summoned their dragons and whisked out of as fast as they could. The fresh air could be felt against their skin after being in that muggy, rotten place. They landed not too far from where they came from, and ran up to Jay to thank him for his efforts.

"You did it!" Nya exclaimed. "How'd you know where to go?"

"Well, I guess you could say I had a little help."

Before anyone could say another word, a yawn was heard behind them. They turned to see a mouth form from where they exited out. Two eyes appeared through the cracks of stone, and looked worn at first, that's when it noticed the ninja.

The being opened it's mouth and began to speak in a deep voice. "Et vos testimonium crispum…. Seraphina, venisti ad me?

All the ninja could do was stare up with widened eyes, unsure what to do as it continued to speak in a foreign tongue.

" Seraphina, vetusta usi sumus obliti estis? Video vos non." A giant hand that was hidden below them lifted them up to its face as he spoke in English. "I apologize, I was mistaken."

He nodded towards Maria and continued on. "I saw the hair of this child and suddenly felt memories go through my mind, which allowed an ancient tongue to slip through my lips. Tell me, children, was it the seven of you that rid me of those parasites?

Without a word, they all just nodded in slight fear he would be mad that they had caused possible damage inside him.

"I see. I must thank you for your efforts. I apologize that you were caught up in all of this madness, but I was in so much pain I could not think clearly and was completely helpless as people that visited my forest and tried to climb me were terrorized by those filthy creatures. I'm eternally grateful to you."

"Excuse me, Mr. Mystic?" Zane called to him.

"My apologies, I haven't introduced myself. I am a diadarabotchi, my name, however, is Ogui."

"Ogui, can you tell us all you know about Seraphina and Onryō's past?"

"I cannot, my silver child," he said with seriousness in his tone. "Though you may have heard the legend, that knowledge is forbidden for any being to acquire, unless otherwise."

"What about me?" Maria spoke up. "Can't you tell **me** at least? I'm the...the reincarnation of Seraphina."

Ogui's eyes widened and instantly focused on Maria's features, from her hair to her face. He also caught sight of the gems attached to Kai, Lloyd and now Jay. "I see," he said, "that explains everything. He has returned and Chaos has begun."

"But what is Chaos?" Lloyd asked. "And do you know anything about Seraphina, or a glass clock, or a boy named Oliver?"

"Oh, oh! Do you know anything about a fancy girl and some dude named Peter?"

"Do you know how to summon the powers of the gem?"

"Calm yourselves,"Ogui spoke, " I will explain all that I can. You see, there was two wars that happened many centuries ago. The first was called Dominance. We were all so different from each other, it lead to much bloodshed and an unquenchable thirst for control. After Seraphina had established peace, many of us 'monsters' roamed around for a purpose in our new lives.

"The humans still feared us and never gave us a chance to redeem ourselves. I walked for years, that's when I met her. She was just another spirit that popped out of no where, but she showed me the land that was still ravaged from the war. She told me I could be different, I could create the land into something beautiful, something better."

The ninja were sitting down on Ogui's hand, and had been listening like any child would when told a fairytale. Jay even raised his hand and asked, "So, you made the land?"

"That I did. My footprints made lakes and oceans, I slept on misshapen piles of stone until they caved and made mountains and hills, I rolled around while I slept and made valleys. But now I fear it'll all be destroyed, Onryō has risen, which means the beginning of the final war, Chaos."

"But Ogui, what about the other war? And what about the origins of the gems?" Maria asked.

He looked at her with pity and continued to speak. "I'm sorry, but I fell into deep sleep before the second war and was only told it happened, nothing more. As for the gems; there still exists the place where Seraphina got them from, deep in a hidden valley southwest from here. The people there can tell you all you wish to know."

The ninja stood up at them sound of a roaring engine. They turned to see the Destiny's Bounty 2.0 flying high above them. An anchor was lowered and they begun to climb to up to be greeted. Maria was the last to climb, but was stopped short as she felt a slight tug on her leg. She turned to face Ogui once more.

"For you, dear child." His palm was spread out, in the center grew a blue bulb which blossomed quickly into a blue flower. She picked it with a smile on her face, as to which he responded. "Forget me nots were her favorite too."

She stopped for a moment and gave him a smile and wave goodbye, she continued to climb up the anchor and was back with her friends. As they sailed away, all seven of the ninja just stared as the mountain faded from view.

* * *

After carefully closing his door and making sure no one was awake, Jay locked it tight and faced his mirror. He began flexing and posing, enhancing the glory and shine of his new gem. "Oh, yeah! Just wait people, there's a new gem carrier on the street and his name is Jay Gordon-Walker!"

"Well, I feel much safer now," a voice spoke from behind him.

He gave out a yelp and prepared to fight, bare handed. When he turned, he only saw Lloyd leaning against his door with an unimpressed look on his face.

"How'd you get in here?" Jay asked. " I was careful this time! Did you break in?"

"No, you left your window open so I slipped in through there. I wouldn't call it 'breaking in' when it's just too easy. I need to talk to you about something though."

"Can't this wait till the morning? Where everyone will be, along with food?"

"It's just a a simple question," Lloyd assured. " I just wanna know what you felt when you saw that girl, and if the name Peter means anything to you."

Jay thought for a moment, he really struggled by the look on his face, to find a good answer. He finally hung his head down a little and answered. "No, I think I did but…. I just can't even remember what it felt like."

"All right, thanks anyway." Lloyd unlocked the door and just left. He gave slight chuckle as he could still hear Jay being heroic in his room. But his answer to his question, it wasn't what he had hoped for. He shook his head at the thought and dismissed the idea, only one thought came into his head.

'Okay, now I think _I'm_ going crazy. There's no way the others and I are reincarnated!'

* * *

 **Question time!**

 **Q. Is Jay Peter?**

 **A. I kinda teased at this, but a clear answer will be coming very soon. Ebony Umbreon asked a something similar in a review on chapter 1 which is the prologue. Check it out!**

 **Q. Do you like Jaya?**

 **A. Yeah, baby! OTP FOREVERRRRRRRRRRR!**

 **Translation: That curl you bear…. Seraphina, you came for me? Seraphina, have you forgotten the old tongue we used? I see, you are not her.**

 **Don't forget to ask any questions in the reviews, eat lots of turkey this Thanksgiving! But do not eat 2.2 lbs of any form of potatoes in one sitting or else it'll kill you, true fact people.**

 **Until then, God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good.**


	18. 17: Small Town Legend

**Disclaimer: I don't own Ninjago.**

 **Hey! Great news, I reached 400 views on my story in one month in one country, made the halfway point for 2,000, AND had a steady viewing of my story this week for the first time in history! I did want to post this last weekend as a surprise but it needed a major rewrite, I even got confused. Hey, you still get a new chapter!**

 **Now let's kick it!**

* * *

 **Chapter 17: Small Town Legend**

 **In the Dying Kingdom...**

"Let's review this one more time, everyone!" Goryō shouted in a tone that tried to retain his normal smoothness. "The child and the king are connecting-in strength and existence -but the theory says…." He stopped as he gestured to Jorōgumo.

"The theory said, 'Though bonded through power and being, power runs free while being is chained by demise. Power may begin anew as slumber- eternal and temporary- may befall both. One to rebirth as one is to awaken; both to find freedom in a final Chaos.'"

"Exactly. So why is it that they are connected in both areas of being and power?"

"Well, I don't know," Harionago said. "The whole theory confused me then, you really think I would understand now? But if they aren't supposed to be connected in strength due to Seraphina's rebirth, then how come you didn't say anything at the beginning, Mister Wannabe-King?!"

"DO NOT TEST ME!" After a deep breath and moment to compose himself, he went back to his usual charming voice. "We never understood the thoughts that went through Seraphina's head, we can only try to counter them. Now, does anyone here have an idea on how to break the bond or know a resource we can turn to for more insight?"

Jorōgumo hissed at him. "Did it ever occur to you that we have our hands full by following our **actual** king's orders? And now you want us to slip in another one of your little ideas?!"

The two were in each other's faces, eyes were locked with deep intensity. Both were prepared to face each other in a split second to the dea-

"Ah oun wit! Ah acually oun on!"

Their heads turned at the source of the muffled speech. Running in was none other than Kitsune, with an unidentifiable object in his mouth. It wasn't exactly the first time he brought something in, so they all just rolled their eyes at the scene he was making.

"Kitsune," Harionago growled at him, "so help me if that is another dead thing you caught like the animal you are, you better hope King Onryō will wake up and is strong enough to drag back out of the depths of what ever hole I'm about to pound you in because I WILL DESTROY YOU!"

Kitsune simply trotted over to the stone table before them and spat out a rock, dripping with his saliva. He panted as he explained to them. "This rock emanated a powerful aura as I approached it. No doubt that it has something inside, it's possible it's a gem."

Hearing that, Goryō raised a fist high above his head and slammed it down on the rock. With the power of that blow, it cracked into two and sent a sliver of crack running down the stone table it rested upon. After being broken open, one half of it began to glow with a dim white light inside. Goryō picked it up and raised it to face, a wicked smile growing at the sight of this.

A twisted look flashed in his demonic, green eyes as he spoke. "So the king wants us to raise two of our bases and our forces. Don't you think we're going to need some special…supplies?

* * *

 **Back in Ninjago…**

The ninja had been gathered in the bridge and were now listening to Misako as she read a translation from one of the scrolls. It wasn't exactly helpful in the way they were hoping, instead of a helpful tidbit that could pertain to Seraphina's past with Onryō or the gems, they got a passage that was like a poem. A disturbing poem to put it lightly. They couldn't get out of hearing it if they tried; Sensei said it could give them insight on the people, or rather creatures, that lived in that time with the spirit queen.

"As the light that brought me into this weary world fades so fast, it comes back for my soul in a darker form. I roam as eyes peer down on me with glares and judging looks that burn right through me force my face to enflame. In the end, I wonder what I am to do now that joy and hope has been drained from my heart that never was." Misako raised her eyes from the paper to see the ninja had looks that ranged from disturbed to confused; however, there was one who was in awe.

"WELL!" Jay said rather loudly. "That was very….um..it was so…right, Cole?"

"Uhh, yeah! I'm on board with you, buddy."

"I'm glad to hear you feel that way," Misako responded with a smile. "I thought it was well written too. What else did you think about it?"

They were at lost for words again, until one small voice broke the silence.

"It's beautiful."

Heads turned to the person sitting at the end, which was none other than Maria. As she noticed the attention that was focused on her, she immediately blushed in embarrassment and began running her mouth off. "I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to give a weird answer but I said the first thing that popped into my head since no one else said anything yet and -"

"I agree," Lloyd said. He gave her a smile which caused her to stop and stare. "It's kinda bittersweet in a way, I guess. But you were really on point with your answer, Maria."

Murmurs of agreement rang out from the teens, causing her smile. The moment was short lived as Sensei Wu had walked in. "Pupils, I have great news."

"You located the village where Seraphina obtained the gems?" asked Zane.

"I'm afraid not," he responded, sending a groan through out the ninja. "I did find _a_ village, or rather, town. Tranquilville to be precise."

Maria perked up at this. "Hey, that's my hometown!"

"That is nice to hear since we are headed there now. And if I'm not mistaken, the festival should be staring at this time."

The pink ninja jumped up and started squealing. "This is so great! I get to see my mom and show you guys the highlights of the place! Oh, I need to plan my outfit!"

She ran out of the room but came back fast and popped her head in the doorway. "Hey, Nya?"

"There's a pile of old clothes in the back of the closet. I was gonna donate it, but you can look through it and throw something together."

"Thanks!"and she took off once more with the door slamming behind her.

"Sensei, do we have to go?" Kai whined. "I'm finally getting better control of my gem and Jay has one now. And you know how long it'll take for HIM to master it."

"Well, thanks for the support, Kai," Jay responded with more annoyance than anger.

Nya spoke up and put in her opinion. "He has a point though. We should focus on getting stronger as a team so we can attack Onryō's forces with everything we got."

"Those words you just said Nya, 'stronger as a team,' hold much truth in them," Sensei said and faced all of them. "Maria is a part of your team and is still very weak. Visiting her home might help her get stronger in a different way than what the six of you are used to. Let her have this moment to get strong and to be what she used to be, a girl."

They were all silent when they heard that last part. Maybe things have been a little too much for her. Sure they made friends with her fast but she was still far behind in training; sometimes it felt like there was somethings about herself that she wouldn't tell them because she was uncomfortable or didn't trust them _that_ much. Maybe she had forgotten who she used to be and was struggling to know. Maybe she was staring to forget was it like to be herself; she already forgot what it was like to be Seraphina.

Lloyd broke the silence by standing up. "Okay, we'll go. It's important to work hard and feel good; a festival seems like the best place for us to study that lesson. We've been pushing ourselves too much lately, we deserve a little fun."

"But it's gonna be so cold out tonight," Cole complained. "There's shoving people and food stands that sell stuff we could make at home or get at someplace else at a reasonable price."

The bridge door flung open with a panting Maria on the other side. She had on her pink tank top under a red hoodie. She wore her dark jeans with a pair black sneakers that had two pink stripes on the heels. Her hair had been tied up with her scarf which was good considering most of it would've stuck to her face that had begun to sweat.

"C'mon guys, we gotta be dressed and ready to go the moment we land! We have to pick up Dareth on our way, so we should get there in time before the booths and stands open If everything goes according to plan. Oh, this is gonna be so awesome! I can't wait to see the carnival and go to the cake roll stand!"

Cole immediately stood right in front of her with huge eyes. "Did you say CAKE ROLL stand?"

She nodded with a smile. "Sure did! They're so tasty and big; they sell at a cheap price so the people who make them get a huge profit since there's always a huge line. They even come in packs that are practically a steal."

"You heard the woman!" he shouted at them with a quick turn of his head. "Get off your butts and get ready for the cake- I mean…the festival!" Just like that, he ran out the door.

* * *

"We're here! C'mon everyone let's go!" Maria practically jumped of the Bounty as soon as they landed at the town's grassy border. She would've too if Lloyd hadn't grabbed her and stopped her in her tracks. "What're you doing? We have to go!"

"Just hold on for one second," he said as he put her down on the deck. He used his spinjitzu and had changed from his gi to his casual attire, with his fedora of course. "You told us the festival lasted for the weekend, it's not going anywhere. Besides, you can't leave us behind after inviting us and Dareth."

"You're right," she said. "But I'm just so excited! I waited for this every year when I still lived here, I was a little scared I couldn't go this time."

"Then let's get our party on!" They turned to face the others in their own casual clothing, with the exception of Dareth who had his brown gi on. He slid over to Maria and put an arm around her. "This was a great idea of inviting me along, pink lady. Right now I'd be home alone, moping around and watching tv by myself."

"And that would be a bad thing?" Kai whispered to Jay. The two shared a laugh amongst themselves but got a whack on the head from Sensei as he walked past the two and overheard them.

"Enjoy this trip, ninja. It serves as a good lesson of balance as Lloyd mentioned earlier. It also gives us opportunities to- FERRIS WHEEL!" Sensei had run off the Bounty and headed for a giant Ferris wheel that could be seen in the distance.

"Huh, I forgot that they were bringing that back this year," Maria said as she, along with everyone else, walked off and stared at the carnival in the distance.

Misako walked in front of them and turned. "I'd better keep an eye on him. Be safe now," were her last words as she ran after Wu.

"How did Tranquilville earn its name?" Zane asked.

Maria gave them a wink and began leading the way. "I'll tell after we take care of important business. Now hurry up, we got a lot of ground to cover!"

* * *

"Did it earn its name because it's so nice here?" Jay asked, as they all tried keeping up with the pink ninja. It seemed like she gotten faster just by being here; maybe this is how she got stronger, just as Sensei foretold.

"I can't tell you!" she replied in a singsong voice as they walked through another row of stands. "You have to be patient!"

"Tell that to my stomach," Cole grumbled. "We've been here for five hours and there's no cake roll stand!"

"Actually, we've been here for 30 minutes and 25 seconds. 26…27…28..29."

"Okay, we get it," Kai interrupted.

"It's like Sensei said, this will be a good thing for all of us. Maria probably misses her mother and seeing her might boost her spirits," Lloyd said. He turned his head back at the sound of giggling from none other than Jay.

"I'm sorry, but that was a good one."

"Oh, stop."

They all continued to follow her down past the stands in progress and we're now headed for a neighborhood. Tranquilville was very different from the city; even with a huge festival to set up for, the people were nice and everything was calm. It was this mysterious energy that spread from the flowery meadows to the cheerful people who would wave at them as though they had known each other. The place felt a little retro with a diner that screamed 60's and a pharmacy that had a soda fountain inside with it.

That was a little strange.

But Lloyd was the only one to notice something was really off. The people even waved at **Dareth** , but as soon as they passed by, he caught a glance at how they would give scowls and appalled looks that were focused on Maria. Parents would turn their kids away when they tried to look at her, teens their age would point and try hard not to laugh out loud. Everyone had a reaction to her presence, but it wasn't the least bit respectful.

It didn't add up. She was nice, the people were nice too but not to her. What did she ever do to make a whole town look down on her?

"I FOUND IT!" Cole screamed, pulling Lloyd out of thought. He locked onto a stand that already had at least 20 people waiting in line for it to open. It too was also setting up and had yet to open.

"How do you know?" Nya asked. "It doesn't have any signs or anything. For all you know, it could be one of those rip off food stands you were complaining about."

"No, he's right. The cake roll stand always has a line before they open, people try every year to get a good spot in line," Maria confirmed.

"Then I'm heading in!" The black ninja charged in line and claimed his spot before it got any bigger.

A few of the ninja were about to protest when Maria cut them off. "We can catch up with him later. Now let's go, my mom is close by!" She took off, catching them off guard at her sudden action and having them struggle to keep up.

"So what does your mom do for a living?" Kai asked loudly.

"She's the head of the library here. Which we should be reaching in a little bit. There!"

They all skid to a perfect stop, except for Dareth who lost his balance and fell flat on the ground. In front of them was a little, old library that was just simple; however, on the glass doors was an outline of a brilliant bird, a pure work of art. It was split apart as a brown haired woman with a messy bun and arms full of books walked out. She noticed the people standing in her path and literally dropped what she was doing.

"Maria!"she cried in joy and ran towards her with open arms.

"Mom!" she replied. The two pulled each other in a tight embrace, tears sneaking out from their eyes. "I missed you so much," Maria said as they pulled back to look at each other.

"I've missed you too, my Maria,"her mother replied, holding her face in her hands. "You've gotten so beautiful since I last saw you. And your hair!"

Maria pulled back with a nervous look on her face. "Yeah...it's a long story. I can tell you though that it's not exactly dyed so getting rid of it isn't an option."

"Well, did you get anything else while you were in the city? No tattoos or weird body piercings?"

"No, mama."

"Oh, darn! I was hoping you would so I could go with you and then we'd be matching!" she joked. Her answer got a laugh from her daughter and her friends that she failed to notice. "Sweetie, aren't you going to introduce me?"

"Guys," she gestured, "this is my mother, Elise Psyche. Mama, these are a few of my friends. The rest kinda got festival fever, but the ones with me are Lloyd, Kai and his sister Nya, Jay, Zane, and Dareth."

"It's very nice to meet all of you," Elise said with a smile. "I hope you've all been good to my daughter and keeping her grounded."

"I'm sorry, Ms. Psyche," Zane said. "None of us would be able to bury Maria alive." In response, a hand turned him around slightly.

"She means keeping her well balanced!" Jay hissed. "Come on, man. Even I knew that!"

The woman just gave laugh in reply. "It's alright. I just hope you all have good time at the Tranquilville festival."

"Speaking of which," Dareth said, "you mind telling us how this place got its name? If we're going to be running around, I prefer it'd be for the festivities instead of some town history field trip."

Maria nodded her head. "Ok, well, it all begins with that," she spoke as she pointed at the bird on the doors. "If it wasn't for that bird, this place wouldn't be the way it is today."

"What'd ya mean?" Lloyd asked.

"The bird is called a Hō-ō, a legendary bird that blessed our town before it was even a town. It is said that it keeps watch over us and ensures we keep peace between nature and civilization, and will return when pure harmony is achieved. I waited year after year to see if it would actually come, after what we've been through really raises the chances that it exists!" she said.

"That's awesome!" Dareth shouted. "Now can have fun?"

"Why not? I've dragged you guys around for too long. Let's kick it!"

They turned and headed back to the places they found interesting, except for Maria and Lloyd who helped Elise with her dropped books. She was a tough lady by balancing them all the way to her car."Oh, go on you two. Have fun, the festival is starting," she insisted.

Maria took off after Dareth, Lloyd on the other hand was stopped at a gentle grab of his hand. He turned to Elise who stared at his chocker. "What a pretty gem."

"It's not real," Lloyd said trying to draw her attention away from it. They already had Ronin eye Kai's gem, it would be smart to keep people from admiring them _too_ much. "It's just a cheap chocker from a junk store."

"Really?" she asked. She took a moment and licked her lips before asking, "Is my daughter…the spirit queen?"

His eyes widened and he backed up slightly. How did she know? Seraphina wasn't in any books, only the scrolls had knowledge on anything pertaining to her. He noticed her face, it was mixed with anxiousness and fear as she waited for his answer.

He took a breath and answered. "She is."

Elise exhaled a loud breath and grabbed his hands. She held them tightly and lowered her head. "Please, protect my little girl."

"Me and my friends will, for you," he answered. She released him, allowing him to run off and catch up with his friends.

She watched him in the distance as she put a hand over her heart. 'She will be a great queen. Please, bless her and guide her, Seraphina.'

* * *

 **WHAATTTTTTT!? Maria's mom knows?! I will tell you how this is possible….soon! Also, I'm gonna be posting a short story soon for ebony umbreon's writing challenge. You should check it out and try it if you want. By the way, do you guys remember those old pharmacies that also sold ice cream and actual food too? They are so rare nowadays, I think they're from the 60's, pretty sure they are.**

 **Read, review, and follow my story and ask questions that will be featured in the following chapter!**

 **Until then, God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good.**


	19. 18: You Can't Hide The Truth

**Disclaimer: I don't own Ninjago, just the ocs and story idea.**

 **Snow Day!**

 **That's all I can say. I've been updating a lil later than when I normally do, so you get a chapter a lil earlier because of a snow day! They're so awesome!**

 **Now, let's go!**

* * *

 **Chapter 18: You Can't Hide The Truth**

It took him a bit, but Lloyd was able to find Maria and Dareth at the carnival, playing the infamous ring toss. They were struggling really hard and even discussed their strategy on how to win the game, but of course, they admitted defeat after trying 15 times. The two of them perked up at the sight of Lloyd and ran up to him.

"Hey, you two having fun?" he asked.

"Don't ask," Dareth responded. "That game is rigged, rigged I say!"

"Of course it is," Maria said as she put a hand on his shoulder. "If it was super easy, then it wouldn't be as thrilling winning it without working hard for it." She turned back to Lloyd and asked, "How's everyone else doing?"

"I texted Cole, who is still in line, everyone else just sorta looked at the stands and told me they would head here for the rides and games. But I can't reach Sensei or my mom since they don't exactly have phones on them."

"Oh, I know where they are." Maria looked up at the Ferris wheel and waved. "Hi, Sensei! Hi, Misako!"

From the very top was two hands that waved back, causing Lloyd to give a chuckle. But he stopped as he noticed people had turned to the source of the sound, giving glares and nasty looks at her. She didn't seem to notice, or maybe she did and was just trying to ignore them all. Either way, he had to find out what she did that was so…bad in their eyes.

He leaned in and whispered to her, "Hey, I need to talk to you. Alone, if possible."

"Uh, sure," she replied. She reached in her hoodie pocket and pulled out a few crumpled bills that she gave to Dareth. "Do you think you can run down to the stands and get us some cotton candy? It shouldn't be that far, the line shouldn't be too long either."

"You got it, pink lady," he said and snatched the money before running off.

"That should give us some time to talk. So what was it you wanted to talk about exactly?"

"Maria," he started to say, but he couldn't get the words out. He grabbed her hand and lead her to a nearby bench to sit for this. "Okay, a little while back, you told me how people at your **school** outcasted you. You didn't…really say anything about the **town** hating you."

"Oh, that thing." She looked down and clenched her fists tightly. "It's just…I wanna tell you but I can't."

"Maria, I just wanna know-"

"That's it!" She quickly lifted her head to face him. "I wanna know too but I don't. I remember being happy when I was young; I went to school and went into town more when I was old enough, and I got hit with reality. I just acted like myself but people didn't like it, they seemed annoyed and scared and almost disgusted by me and everything about me.

"It didn't matter to them if I was good at something, it was awful to them because _I_ was in on it. I know people have been looking at me weird since we got here, I'm just trying to do what mama always said."

"Which is?"

"She always told me, 'Focus on the people who matter to you just as much as you matter to them.' She practically gave up her good name in the town to keep me happy and safe 'cause everyone would pick on me, even when she was there and they were friends with her. And you know…it worked. I have you guys now."

"That's right!" Lloyd stood up with a smile. "These people don't know how great you really are. You've worked harder than any of them, you've sacrificed a lot too just to get better and stronger. You're a ninja and a prime example of how ninja never quit."

"You're right too, Lloyd!" she shouted as she jumped up too. "I'm the pink ninja, the elemental master of spirit, and I'm the REINCARN-"

"Shhh!" Lloyd shushed her as he quickly put a hand over her mouth. A few people had looked once again, gave their glares, and turned back to what they were doing. "Okay, I'm glad you're getting my point," he whispered "but I think we should keep the reincarnation thing a secret."

"Why?" she asked in a muffled voice.

"Well…I guess since the town hates you, they would probably hate you even more if they found out. You know, kinda blame you for all the monsters and stuff appearing." He removed his hand, allowing her to think for a moment.

"You have a point. Just one thing, there hasn't been any attacks here from Onryō or any monster."

* * *

 **Meanwhile….**

Near the borders of Tranquilville, a little girl in plaid dress was chasing her huge bouncy ball; she had lost tracked of where she was and just followed where it lead her. She finally caught it and got a good look at how the lights of the town where far beyond her. Her mother would be mad if she noticed she had gone farther than she was supposed to, so she started running back.

"Quickly, you worthless blobs! We have to make this plan work!" A voice shouted.

The girl stopped and walked slowly to where the person had shouted. Maybe he could help her get back home. She followed it through the flowers and tall grass, and quickly stayed back at the sight before her. In the center was a huge nine tailed fox who was shouting at formless purple blobs that floated off the ground.

"Now that we're all here, we can prepare to raise my base once more!" The fox raised a paw high that held a white round gem. "With this particular gem, we can have the upper hand over the queen!" He began to cackle like a maniac when a chorus of chirps and clicks interrupted him.

He put his paws on his hips and shot the blobs a look. "Do I look like I care whether she's a queen or princess? It's the same thing, she's a royal pain either way." The fox was answered with more chittering, making him throw his paws in the air. "Fine, she's a princess because she's technically not that old! Just load in the bait, you floating piles of snot!"

That was all the little girl could take; she ran away, and didn't care if they were following her or not.

* * *

"Hey, guys," Jay called over as he walked to the rest of the ninja team, excluding Cole, with Nya. "This place is awesome! It's as good as Mega Monster Amusement Park!"

"I agree," Zane said. "The residents of this town highly represent tranquility and compassion. They didn't seem frightened by my presence as a nindroid."

Sensei Wu nodded in agreement. "Very observant, Zane. The people here truly are accepting and friendly, I believe there are hardly any problems amongst them. Wouldn't you agree, Maria?" he asked the girl who had lowered her head through out the conversation.

"Oh, uh…well, yes. They're very…very…."

"Are you okay?" Nya asked. "You've been acting kinda quiet all of a sudden."

"Yes!" she answered a little too quickly. "I'm fine, a little tired to be honest. I'll go to a restroom and splash cold water on my face to wake me up." Without giving them a chance, she ran off.

"Well, that was weird," Kai said. "I just don't get her sometimes. She gets all energetic and then just goes back to being quiet and shy. It's like she has a spilt personality."

"Maybe she acts like that because she's afraid," Lloyd snapped at him. He quickly realized what he said as everyone's eyes widened at his sudden outburst. He lowered his head and mumbled, "She's afraid…that we'll hate her for who she really is."

Jay was the first to break the silence. "That's stupid. She's a good person, how could anyone hate that?"

"Is that all she really is?" Sensei asked them. "It seems Maria has shared more background about herself to Lloyd because she questions your true loyalty and support to her. There are somethings I fail to understand about her, which is the biggest mistake any sensei could make."

He put a hand on Lloyd's shoulder, making him raise his head to face him. "Perhaps it is time you tell us what she can't. In order to fulfill her true potential and gain better control of her powers, we must help heal her of any problems that reside in her heart."

He took a deep breath and exhale as he faced them. "Alright. It first started when we had her train with the weapons…."

* * *

Maria could still feel the cool sensation of water as she walked out from the port-a-potty. It made her shiver as the night breeze hit her face. She quickly covered it to preserve some heat, at which she began to hear two voices that stuck out to her.

"I mean it, mommy! A big scary monster said something about a princess! I wanna find the princess!"

"That's enough! I've told you not to go wandering far away, now you're lying to get yourself out of trouble! Wait here, we're going straight home when I'm done."

With the slam of a door, Maria uncovered her face to see a little girl leaning on a huge bouncy ball as she quietly cried. The girl heard about a princess, and the fact that she mentioned a monster that brought said princess could only mean that another one of Onryō's captains was closing in. It was debatable, but Maria decide to talk to the girl in the end while her mother was busy. She kneeled down and waited for the girl to notice her and stop crying, which didn't take too long.

"I heard you were looking for me," Maria said with a smile.

The girl instantly perked up and shouted, " I knew it! There is a princess! You are the-"

"Shhhh! I am, but we have to keep it a secret."

The girl immediately sat back down and tilted her head. "Why?"

"Because bad guys are after me."

"Why?"

"Because they wanna hurt people, and I'm trying to stop them with my friends."

"Why?"

"Because that's what a real princess does. We protect and put others before ourselves. I need you to tell me what happened when you were out there."

"…why?"

Maria was loosing patience at this point, but was able to keep herself from loosing her cool. "Because, because…it'll make you a hero because you helped me. People who help princesses are great heroes, and I'll be your friend forever and ever."

"Okay!" the girl said rather cheerily. "The monster was talking to blobby monsters and he had a pretty white gem!"

Maria took a sharp breath in at this. Onryō's forces had a gem, who knows what it was capable of and what they would do with it. Plus this monster sounded like he was headed for the town right this moment. She was snapped out of her trance as the force of someone pushed her to the ground.

She shook her head and looked back at the scene where the mother had her girl in her arms protectively. "Stay away from my daughter, Psycho!" she shouted. "I don't want you to fill her head with your nonsense!"

People had taken this chance to gather around and shout as they noticed that none of the decent people were by Maria's side anymore. "M-miss," she said shakily, "it's p-pronounced 'Psyche.'"

"I don't care! You're nothing but a freak, a danger to everyone here!" Shouts of agreement sounded off with the mother's statement.

"She's the Town Freak!"

"What a loser!"

"She's such a geek!"

"The world would be better if she disappeared forever!"

Maria began to hyperventilate as the screams began to sink into her mind. She crouched down and tried covering her ears to block out the noise, but they kept shouting louder than ever saying, "TOWN FREAK! TOWN FREAK!"

Her fists shook furiously and began to glow pink. Everyone stopped and stared, asking each other what she was up to. She couldn't see it in her state, but she could feel all the sorrow and anger. She could..no, she **wanted** to let it out. Let it all out….let it all-

"Maria!" The pink ninja quickly sat up to see her friends pushing their way through the crowd. Lloyd quickly helped her stand up and wiped her tears that were forming in her eyes. "We're sorry we didn't get here in time, but we heard the shouting just now and got worried. I'm…I'm sorry I wasn't here sooner."

"Listen up, you people!" Dareth shouted. "You should be ashamed and embarrassed at yourselves for ganging up on a sweet girl! If I hear anymore of this, you're gonna be dealing with the brown ninja!"

"She's evil!" the mother replied. "She's been nothing but a complete embarrassment to our town. Chasing fairy tales, pushing other people away, and look at her and her hair! She's got the fashion sense of a hobo."

Kai stepped up to her and got in her face. "Maybe she does look like one, but the blame is on YOU for giving her inspiration."

A loud 'oooh' rang out through the crowd as the mother blushed in embarrassment. Misako stepped forth to address them as well. "You've all been the ones pushing her away, Maria has spent time with us for a while and has proved to be a kind hearted young lady. She has done nothing wrong that has caused actual harm to you or the town."

"Not yet!" a voice echoed around them. Everyone was looking around to see where it had come from when a puff of smoke appeared above them. They all gasped at the sight of a floating, yellow, nine tailed fox with a black diamond on his forehead, elegant black markings that highlighted his red eyes, and around his neck was a black collar that had on-

"A gem!" Zane shouted. "It's white, and logic dictates that it belongs to me!"

"You're wrong, it belongs to me! You can't connect with it while I have it under possession, or it could also be you don't even have a soul or a real heart!" The fox's shouts made Zane lower his head. "People of this town, I am Kitsune, the fourth captain in King Onryō's army!"

"Wait a minute!" Jay shouted and pointed a finger at him to stop. "So does this mean that you guys get ranked depending on how crazy or sane you are? 'Cause if you're the fourth, then obviously that means you're above Harionago and we all know how much of a lunatic she is. And it really says something if an animal is above her because-"

" **SHUT IT!"** Kistune's scream caused Jay to freak out and quickly hide behind Nya. "I'm the fourth because I'm a better than her, okay?! I'm not just some dumb animal, I'm stronger, wiser, more organized, and I work well for a captain that doesn't have opposable thumbs. So there!"

"Well, what're you doing here?" Nya demanded.

"I'd tell you, but I don't think your brains could process it all, so hear this. I demand that before the festival ends, which is about 36 hours, the spirit princess comes to me with the all the gems she and her allies have gathered, and deliver them to me by that time."

The crowd began to look around for what Kitsune was demanding; as a result, Lloyd, Kai, Jay, and Maria joined them and tried to keep the attention off them. It was working until a shout came from the crowd. "Princess Maria will stop you, you big meanie!" the little girl shouted.

Everyone immediately turned toward to said person and the gem bearers, who gave out a weak chuckle in reply. Under the glares of the people, Lloyd stepped forward. "It's three gems against one, we have the upper hand and you know it! There's nothing that'll make us give them to you!"

"I thought you would play that card, but I have the winning one in my paw!" He clapped his paws together twice and in a puff of smoke appeared a huge bird that glowed with colors that ranged from rich reds to brilliant golds. It was the Hō-o, and it was in a cage, shrieking away at the world. "I wonder what would happen if the legendary bird that protects your town dies so suddenly."

"Don't you dare hurt that beautiful creature!" Maria shouted.

"But _I_ won't be the one hurting it. Its life depends on _you_ giving me what I want or not," Kitsune said slyly. "Think about it, princess." With a loud clap, he disappeared with the bird. The people had overcome their shock of that moment and glared back at the ninja, but mostly glared at Maria.

She could feel their looks burning right through her when the mood was interrupted as Cole pushed through the crowd, arms full of bags and a huge smile plastered on his face. "I got the cake rolls! I have enough for three months!" He stopped and looked around, but his smile didn't fade as he asked his friends a simple question.

"What'd I miss?"

* * *

 **Question time! (All from Ebony Umbreon)**

 **Q. Does the whole town know Maria is Seraphina?**

 **A. They do now.**

 **Q. Are they jealous or evil?**

 **A. No, they're more like disappointed and embarrassed by her. But trust me, things will get nasty next chapter.**

 **Q. Was Maria clumsy or something?**

 **A. I mentioned this in the story, but in case you didn't catch it, here's the answer simplified. She was outgoing but turned kinda shy and pushed everyone away because they pushed away who she really was and what she was into. I will also get into this more next chapter.**

 **I'll be on a hiatus for the holidays and posting not just a new chapter next week, but also a short story for Ebony's writing challenge! Hope you can check it out!**

 **Until then, God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good.**


	20. 19: Events To Come

**Disclaimer: I don't own Ninjago, only what you don't recognize is mine.**

 **Hey guys! So this is my last chapter for this year, it's so sad! But I'll be working on a bunch of chapters over the holiday season when I can! So get ready for new locations, new characters, new powers, and new discoveries!**

 **Also, I've been having some harsh weather on my end so my short story for the writing challenge was deleted. I'll have it up tomorrow since I'm still having technical difficulties, it's a miracle I could get this chapter up.**

 **Last thing, I have a poll up; vote for your favorite oc! Whether they be evil or good, vote for the ocs that I have formally introduced. (Ex. Ocs that have been named. You'll know when you see the poll.) I recommend you vote after reading this chapter since I have three characters in here that'll also be on the poll.**

 **Now let's go!**

* * *

 **Chapter 19: Events To Come**

The full moon was cloaked in clouds as the ninja team dashed from shadow to shadow. The voices of the townspeople faded farther and farther from earshot **.** The team reached an emptier part of the town and stopped underneath a grove of trees.

"How..how much..farther?" Dareth asked between breaths.

"My house is past this grove," Maria replied.

"And how long will it take us to get there?"

"Well…. The grove's a mile and a half long, about 30 minutes if we walk."

He let out a groan and fell flat on his face as he whined. "Can't we just stay here where it's safe? I don't wanna walk any _morrrrre_."

"We have to," Kai said. "Those people hate us and Maria because they think it's our fault Kitsune showed up. And they looked really determined to get their hands on us."

"But it's not our fault, we're the good guys."

Sensei walked over to Dareth and pulled him back on his feet. "It doesn't matter if we caused this or not. Fear will make people believe any lies, it makes them pin the blame on whatever can be destroyed easily. In their eyes, it is easier for them to take us down, taking down Kitsune would be too difficult to accomplish."

"Wu is right," Misako spoke up. "We're the easier targets, and they won't stop until they've destroyed us. To them, we are the source of fear." She turned to Maria and said, "Lead the way."

The pink ninja complied, leading them over small streams and pricker bushes that managed to snag on a few of them. Jay ran to catch up with her as Nya picked off the prickers that stuck to his back. "So why exactly-ow-did your mom choose to-OW-live so far from town and the rest of the people? **OW!** "

"…. She just thought it'd be safe," she whispered.

"What was that?"

"It's calmer here, the town is too noisy for her."

"What about when you had to go to school or the store?" Cole asked as he popped a cake roll in his mouth.

"The town isn't far, and it doesn't take to long to drive there. Can we hold off on the questions for now, please?"

"Just a simple question," he mumbled under his breath. However, he got elbowed in the side from Lloyd, who had heard him. "What was that for?"

"She's sensitive and has a past, so lay off. Somethings can only be told by her when she's ready."

He was about to continue on when he bumped into Maria who had stopped suddenly and looked around. She just stood still, giving others looks of concerns on their faces. "Um, Maria," Zane started to speak, "is everythi-"

"SHHHH!"

They looked back at each other with confusion. Nya took a chance at talking to her. "You don't have to shu-"

"SHHHH!"

"Don't shush me!" Nya said, her hands on her hips. "It's rude to just-"

"I'm serious. Everyone be quiet." She closed her eyes for a moment and focused on all sounds around her.

That's when she heard the drops.

"Run," she said while sprinting. Everyone was caught off guard but managed to keep up with her pace.

"What is it?! Is it Kitsune?!" Jay screamed.

"No! It's something much worse!"

* * *

Elise was finishing up her book when there was a knock at the cottage door. She got up from her little chair by the fireplace and went to unlock the door. Very few people knew where she lived; she liked it that way and had always wanted to keep it that way. But instead of an angry mob wanting to take away her daughter as her nightmares reminded her every now and then, she got ten people who were soaked to the bone from the heavy rain.

"Where all of you outside in this weather?" she asked. With a shaky nod from all of them, she stepped to the side and opened the door for them to run from the cold. "You poor things," she said while closing the door, "you sit right by the fire and heat up. Maria, you go to your room, take a hot bath, change into something thick, and go right to bed."

"Y-y-y-yes, m-m-m-mama." She waddled down the hall, took a right, and entered with a slam of a door. The others had huddled by the fire and began warming up as Elise went in the kitchen to prepare some tea. It took a while, but she came back with a tray of mugs that was quickly snatched and inhaled to the last drop.

"Y-y-ya know, I think it would've been helpful if someone told us you get a lot of rain here," Kai shivered out." I've never felt so cold in my life."

"And my cake rolls are soaked!" Cole held up the paper bags that had his soggy treats inside. "What a waste of $10!"

"I'm very sorry the festival was ruined because of the weather," Elsie sympathetically said. "Things just haven't been the same."

"Oh, don't worry," Dareth waved off. "The rain didn't ruin it, it was this talking fox that ruined our reputation which spoiled the festival for us. Now everyone here hates us but hey, they don't have social media or know what it is, so we just can't show our faces here again."

Everyone had tried shushing him to stop, but it was too late. Elsie's eyes widened, but instead of freaking out, she calmly spoke. "Do you mean a kitsune?"

"Wait a minute. How do you know about it?" Jay asked.

She said nothing, rather she walked to another room and pulled out a small stack of books from a dusty old shelf. She came back and set them on the coffee table, pulling out a blue one and flipping to a page that had the image of the one who had sullied their name; it was an image of a kitsune. "I am a librarian after all," she said while showing them the image. "I always tend to find something interesting while I read."

"You have books on mythology?" Misako asked.

"Yes, they were Maria's favorite type of books. I got all I could get my hands on, no matter the price."

"Hang on, she liked to read mythology?" Lloyd asked.

"I assume that means she never told you," Elsie replied. Everyone mumbled in agreement, causing her to lower her head. "I knew she was scared, but I thought she would gain some confidence after being brave enough to leave home."

"What do you mean?"

"N-nothing. That's for her to tell you, not me. So what did happen at the festival?

Sensei stood up with seriousness in his eyes. "Kitsune has trapped the Hō-o and has given us an ultimatum: hand over Maria with the gems for its safe release, or refuse and have the Hō-o harmed."

"No, not my little girl!" she gasped. "But the Hō-o is connected to our town, if he destroys it….I can't imagine."

"Maybe we should give him what he wants," Jay suggested. "If he destroys that bird, then the whole town might fall apart."

"No way!" Kai exclaimed. "I'm finally getting better control of my gem, and Kitsune has one already. From what we've seen, just one is too powerful for anyone, good or evil, to use. Think about the ability it has, we'll make it worse if we give him three more."

"But we can not hand over Maria in this obvious trap," Zane added on. "She is important to our main mission. If we lose her, then we will lose the whole battle."

"True, but we have to pick something. Times running out, we have like less than two days!" Cole said.

"We can't pick either. They're both hard choices," said Nya.

"Enough," Lloyd said while standing up. "I have a plan, but we'll need a wig, a pink outfit, and some hair dye. Also, who's willing to be a decoy?"

Jay's hand immediately shot up. "Ooh! I have a dress and wig, we just need the dye!"

Everyone just stared at him, Nya leaned over and put a hand on his shoulder. "Jay…we're gonna talk after this is sorted out."

* * *

Morning came and a thick smell of pancakes and eggs wafted through the air. It was enough to wake up Maria and make her do a double take at her surroundings. She had passed out in her old room; pink wall paper, a twin bed piled with quilts and sheets to wrap her up in a cocoon of warmth, and drawings of creatures from myths were hung amongst her walls. Folded on her bed was her gi and neko-te, probably left by Sensei just in case.

She stretched and got off her bed, shuffling to the kitchen where her mom was dishing a big breakfast for her. "Good morning, sweetie," she replied sweetly. "Did you sleep well?"

"Sure did," Maria yawned as the plate and tall glass of orange juice were served as she sat down. "Where'd my friends go?"

"They had business in town, just some shopping." Elsie walked over and sat next to her. "Maria, I found your old books on myths."

Maria had begun eating and raised an eyebrow at her mom while her mouth was full. "Okay?"

"Well, I think there's a few pages we should go over together. Also, we should talk and catch up more."

"Alright," she responded causally as she shoveled in more food. "Bring it over, we can look at it now."

Her mom left the room and returned with a faded brown book in her hand. She set it down on the table and turned to a page that read:

 **Tricksters and Shape shifters**

"I started reading this chapter because I thought _you_ would find it interesting."

Maria grabbed it and flipped through the pages, stopping at a page with pictures of floating blobs, basically. It read:

 **Obake: Formless shape shifters that can take the form of any shape. These spirits can be persuaded by power, following the strongest shape shifter as their leader.**

" _The monster was talking to blobby monsters!"_

Her eyes widened as the voice rang out through her head. It made sense, that wasn't the real Hō-o. She slammed her hands down on the table as she stood up. "Mom, I have to go and fight Kitsune! They left to find him, didn't they?"

A sly smile went across Elise's face as she stood up. "They don't know where he is, but I think I do. In fact, why don't I drive you there?"

* * *

"Come on, Lloyd! I wanna be the decoy! Pleeeeeaaasssssse!" Jay whined.

"It's not my call. Nya said she would be the decoy and she wanted you stop dressing up like a crazy man."

The ninja team had successfully gotten all the supplies they needed and had gotten back on the bounty. Everyone else was in the bridge trying to find Kitsune while Jay was begging Lloyd to be the decoy as they waited for Nya.

"It was a one time thing! You know, when we were trying to catch the mysterious samurai? It was a good idea at the time."

"Not really."

The two were about to argue, but the door behind them opened, revealing Nya in full disguise as Maria. And she was none too pleased at the ridiculous outfit and itchy wig she had too wear.

"I take it back, this wasn't a good plan," she told Lloyd. "Why can't we just have the real Maria give him the gems and ambush him before he gets away?"

"It's too risky, I don't wanna see Maria get hurt."

 _ **ScrrrrrrEEEEECCCCHHHHhhh!**_

The loudspeaker screeched to life with its infamous feedback. The three ninja held their ears until Sensei's voice spoke. "Jay, Nya, and Lloyd, report to the bridge. We have narrowed down Kitsune's location to five possible choices and we are in need of assistance."

Two immediately went down, but one particular ninja stayed behind.

Lloyd looked down on his gem and closed his eyes. They left her without really telling her why, she must be worried sick about them. Maybe if he could just focus, then he could see what she's doing now. He just kept thinking as he slipped deeper and deeper into the darkness of his mind.

There was a flash of green light. He turned his head to Elsie driving, another flash and he looked down at a book with a kitsune on the page. It didn't make sense until he looked at his hand that contained three marbles, one green, one red, and one blue.

"Lloyd! Wake up!"

He shook his head and Kai came into view with annoyance on his face. "What's the matter with you? You were supposed to come down to the bridge and-"

"Maria's going after Kitsune!"

Kai's face softened. "Wait, you used your power?"

"Yes, tell the others to suit up! If I'm right, she's going to take him on alone."

* * *

The car stopped at the town border where an eerie wind was blowing. Even the sky had turned to a dark gray to match the mood. The mother and daughter got out, walking slowly away form safety. Maria had her neko-te on as she carried the "gems" in her hands.

"Kitsune, I have the gems. Come out with the Hō-o."

She was answered as a puff of smoke appeared before her, with Kitsune stepping out gracefully and flamboyantly. With a smirk on his face, he said, "So you've decided to come with your mommy, huh? Well, you're going to be needing someone to cry on when this is over."

"Where's the bird?" Maria demanded.

"Temper, princess, temper." He clapped his paws and the caged Hō-o floated beside him, in false pain and sorrow. "I've got the bird, now hand over the gems."

"Fine by me," she replied as she tossed him the decoys. He caught them and had a wicked smile grow on his face. "But just to make things fair..." In one swift motion, she took off one of her neko-te and chucked it at the bird; it dissolved on contact with the attack and split into Obake.

"No!" Kitsune screamed at the fleeing spirits. "You idiots, get back in the cage! Oh, no matter. I have four keys to the Heart now!"

"Afraid not," Elsie said. "Those are nothing but mere marbles."

"What!?" he screamed in anger. His paw shook furiously as he broke them to pieces, his nostrils flaring. "That was the last straw, now you'll pay!" He gave a one huge thunder clap that gave off wind from the sound, dark clouds engulfed him.

Maria quickly ran to retrieve her weapon and ran back into the car as Elise struggled to start the engine. As soon as it started up, she hit the gas and drove out of there. The last thing she saw as they drove away was a pair of giant red eyes that stared them down.

* * *

The ninja team kept looking over the edge of the ship as Nya steered at maximum speed. Nya called out over the rushing winds, "Do you see them?"

"No!" Jay called back. "Everything looks the same, and Lloyd can't activate his power!"

"Well, try harder!"

"Hey guys," Dareth started to speak.

"Not now, Dareth." Jay said as they all turned back to Lloyd. "Come on, buddy. You gotta find them."

"I'm trying, but it won't work. It just stopped."

"Guys-"

"Be quiet, Dareth," Cole said with annoyance in his voice. "We have to find them soon, they're in trouble. How'd you activate it before?"

"Guys-"

"Shut it, Dareth!" Kai shouted. "It doesn't just happen easily, Cole. Lloyd got his a little later than mine, so he's probably gonna take longer in-"

"GUYS!"

"WHAT, DARETH?!" they all shouted and turned.

"I found them!" He pointed over the side at a small car driving away from a pair of giant red eyes approaching the town.

"Nya," Sensei cried out, "follow them!"

"Roger that!" She turned the ship and stayed close on their tail. She managed to park the bounty just above where the car had stopped, all of them slid down the anchor and approached the mother and daughter.

"Guys!" Maria called out as she ran towards them. "How'd you know I was here?"

Lloyd stepped forward with disappointment on his face. "I used my power and saw how you left to take Kitsune on. **All by yourself**."

"…oh," she hung her head down. "Sorry but…I thought it'd be okay….and my mom was with me and…."

"It's not important now. Where's Kitsune?" Misako asked.

"Well, he's kinda upset I tricked him and found out he was fooling us with a fake Hō-o. Now he kinda turned into a pair of giant eyes that want us dead."

"Are you implying that _that_.." Zane pointed at the eyes, "..is Kitsune?"

"More or less."

Cole gave Kai a hard slap on the back. "Now's your chance. Activate your gem and fight that thing!"

"Uh..r-right." He stepped forward, closed his eyes as he clenched his fists and focused. He visibly shook as he could feel the power burning up inside him and-

Nothing.

Nothing happened.

"Oh, come on!" Jay screamed. "You've been saying all this time, 'Oh, I know how to use my gem! I'm so powerful!' You've been lying to us!?"

"I said I was getting better! Did I imply I could master it?!" Kai shot back.

Sensei quickly stepped between the two. "That's enough! All we can do now is stand together and protect the people!"

The team got rid in line, weapons out and ready to attack. The eyes finally reached them, a crack of lighting flashed, revealing Kitsune's giant head as it faded. "You pathetic humans think you have a chance against me?!" he bellowed out. "All of you are worthless, you'll all die eventually, so why speed up the process?!"

"Because we're ninja. Ninja never quit!" Lloyd shouted. "Even if we die, it's with honor."

"Oh, goody! You're all teaching me a _valuable_ lesson!" Kitsune replied sarcastically. "I feel so happy, so I'll stop my destruction of the town!"

The green ninja stepped to the front raised his hand, the ninja mimicked his action. "Get ready…"

"You can't win! Give up!"

"Get set…" Their fists began to glow with their respective elements.

"Onryō will RISE!"

"Now!" They all launched the attack, merging into one ball of power that hit Kitsune on his forehead. He let out a scream as he dissolved into dark particles and disappeared into a dark hole underneath him. A gentle light broke the clouds apart, signaling he was no more.

"How did the heck did that work?!" Jay exclaimed. "I thought he would've been harder since he's ranked fourth!"

"Perhaps, it was Maria," Elsie answered, having everyone turn their heads towards her. "After all, she was the great and powerful Seraphina in another life."

"WHAT!?"everyone, except Lloyd, screamed.

"M-mom! You knew all this time?!"

"I had a hunch when I came across a certain book with her picture. You looked so similar, and now you two are really alike with that new hairstyle of yours."

People from the buildings around them started coming out and quickly crowded around the ninja; they had pushed the adults always from them. All of them had their eyes focused on them, giving them an uneasy feeling.

"Okay, people!" Kai said. "If you're gonna start raving on us, fine. If you're gonna rave on Maria, then call an ambulance 'cause I WILL burn you!"

The mother from before held her daughters hand as she walked up to Maria and got in her face. She began to sweat as the mother asked, "Did you bring that monster here and explode it in our town?!"

Before she could answer, Kai immediately started pushing her back. "Okay, you especially, need to back up before I-!"

"Kai, stop," Maria said. She then looked back at the mother and said, "I did."

A silence befell the crowd, but the reaction was different than expected. The people began a slow clap that gained speed and broke from the synchronization. Cheers erupted as people shouted out their praise.

"You go, Psyche!"

"You're my heroes!"

"I LOVE YOU GUYS!"

The ninja soaked up the attention as Maria felt a pull on her hair. She looked down to see the little girl who pleaded at her with big eyes. "Um…Princess Maria? The festival might be over 'cause of the monsters and my mommy said bad things about you, but could you come back next year, pretty please?"

She smiled and picked up the girl in her arms. "I wouldn't miss it for the world."

From the sidelines, Wu asked Elise, "So you know everything about what has been going, and what your daughter must do?"

"Yes, and I know that Kitsune is still active. His illusions really are powerful and, of course, very convincing."

"Well, now what?" Dareth asked. "Are we gonna tell them that he's alive and still has one of those gem thingies?"

"No," Wu said. "All we can do is wait to face him again, but we should still celebrate Maria. She won her first fight."

"And what would that be?" Misako asked.

"Although there's many more to come, she successfully fought the doubt within her. It's a sign that we should place our hope in her, just as she placed not false, but real hope in what she could do. That is how we can get stronger; we give ourselves hope."

* * *

 **Hope you guys liked this chapter, don't forget to vote.**

 **See you next year, have a safe and Merry Christmas and new year!**

 **Until then, God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good.**


	21. 20: Jungle Trouble

**Disclaimer:I don't own Ninjago. I own the story idea and ocs, so don't you dare try to steal 'em!**

 **Technically…it's next year.**

 **So let's go!**

 **(P.S. I got something special for you guys since we reached the 20 mark:)**

* * *

 **Chapter 20: Jungle Trouble**

 _Lloyd was running as fast as he could, his legs feeling weak enough to give out at any second. His chest was heaving as he struggled to catch his breath. He just had to get away from his chaser; however, he didn't even know what was after him. He didn't even remember what he did today or where he was headed, he just kept running in the dark._

 _Taking a chance, he stopped and turned to see the pursuer, but saw nothing. Darkness as far as the eye could see stretched on forever and ever and ever…_

" _Lloyd!"_

 _He turned as he easily identified the voice with Kai, who, at the moment, was running towards him and fell to his knees as he reached him. Lloyd kneeled to his eye level and let him lean on his shoulder as he tried catching his breath. "L-Lloyd," Kai gasped out, "we gotta get out of here! It's coming!"_

 _"What're you talking about? What's coming?"_

 _ **BOOM,BOOM,BOOM…..**_

" _That!" he replied while pointing in the direction of where the giant footsteps were heard. "That's coming! He wants us to go, but we can't! It's too dangerous!"_

 _"Who is he?!" Lloyd persisted. "What's going on? What's coming?"_

 _Kai had fully passed out and fell to the ground, just in time for Lloyd to see a familiar giant tower above them and let out a bone-chilling howl._

" _H-Hibagon?"_

* * *

"Lloyd, wake up!" Kai said, as he continued to poke at the Green Ninja's face, who seemed to be having some nightmare from the way he fidgeted in his sleep. This was taking too long for him, so he positioned himself right next to his friend's ear and started whispering. "Lloyd, it's time to get up. Sensei's gonna whack you with his staff if you don't get up."

"No!" Lloyd screamed as he shot up from his sleep. He held his head in hands as he tried to calm himself down. Kai, on the other hand, had thought his idea worked and had a smug look on his face as he had his hands on his hips in pride.

"Well, I'm glad to see you're up. I wonder if I start doing this trick to Jay, he'll let me have a turn at Fist-2-Face 2 when I wanna play."

"Kai?" Lloyd asked, finally noticing the Red Ninja was in his room. "What're you doing in here? What time is it?"

"Three in the morning. And I gotta admit, you didn't look like you were having a good dream."

"A-a dream? I was dreaming? Then that means…" He stopped for a second to process what had happened. It all felt so real, but it felt like there was some meaning to it.

In a split second, he grabbed Kai by his pajama collar and pulled him to his face. "Kai, I get it now! I had a dream where the both of us were being chased by the Hibagon, and you were saying something on how he wanted us to go someplace dangerous! Of course; you and I had the same dream that's warning us that the Hibagon must be in danger!"

"….actually, I just wanted to borrow a blanket since I got a lil cold."

"Well, too bad!" Lloyd released him and started gathering his gear that was scattered across his room. "Kai, we're leaving for Hiroshi's Labyrinth. Get your gi and weapon, if anyone happens to notice you, don't tell them what we're really up to."

"Well, okay," he replied with a shrug and headed out the door. "But just to be fair…" he said as he popped his head back, "..I think it might be hard since you woke up half of Ninjago with your screaming."

* * *

The two ninja had successfully sneaked off the Bounty and landed in what they hoped was close to the Jewel. Everything seemed normal and quiet…too quiet.

"Lloyd, are you sure your dream actually meant for us to come here? They never really make sense like any other dream, so we're probably wasting time."

"I'm not going back until I see the Hibagon and his kids safe and sound," he declared. "It's not exactly impossible Onryō's captains _wouldn't_ be interested in catching them for their own gain."

"And it's not exactly possible that they _would_ be interested," Kai shot back. "And if you wanna see them so badly, why don't you just call for them? Since we've started this crazy mission, everything seems to like you! The Hibagons, the fairies, and I wouldn't be surprised if one of Onryō's captains bent to your will too."

"Look, Kai," Lloyd said as he whipped around to face him. "I know you're tired and cranky, but you don't have to let it get to you and act like a-!" He was cut off as something big from the treetops fell on top of him in a flurry of leaves.

Kai quickly unsheathed his sword and prepared to attack whatever had landed on his friend. Instead of seeing a bloodthirsty beast that would also snack on him as well, he found a big, black ball of fur resting on top of Lloyd, who began to realize what was on him and smiled.

"Well, what'd ya know? It's Fuzzball!" he said as he lifted himself off the ground as much as he could. The ball of fur, or rather, hibagon young, came to life and opened its green eyes as he hopped off of Lloyd and immediately reached to be picked up, which worked as the Green Ninja scooped him up in his arms.

"Look at you, buddy! You've gotten so big, you're almost as big as me!" he said while letting it hold his hand. "Hey, Kai, you remember Fuzzball, right? We helped him when he was sick."

"I remember helping him, I don't remember giving him a name that's gonna get him beaten up at the park," Kai huffed while crossing his arms. He suddenly perked up and asked, "Wait…if that guy is here, then where's his siblings and dad?"

Right one cue, three more balls of fur fell on top of him, squishing him to a helpless state as they played with his spikes. "I found them," he replied. "But where's the dad?"

A howl echoed around them and from the treetops, the Hibagon fell and landed perfectly beside them. "I guess _he_ found _us,_ " Lloyd said with a chuckle. "It's nice to see you again, big guy! How've you been?"

The Hibagon held out a hand, having his young instinctively run up it and latch onto his back. He looked back at the ninja and gave out a short huff, as if he wanted them to follow suit. Lloyd caught onto this easily, so he pulled Kai up his arm and took a seat right in between the young. As soon as the Hibagon could feel that they were secure, he dashed into the darkness of Labyrinth, prompting the drowsy ninja to fall back asleep in their interrupted peace.

* * *

Morning had come and the sunlight hit the sleeping Water Ninja's face, allowing her to wake up and stretch. She looked around her room as her sleepy eyes fluttered open, noticing her roommate was sitting on the other side, wide awake and reading. Nya hopped out of bed and walked over to Maria, gaining her attention.

"Morning, sleepyhead," she said. "Did you sleep well?"

"Fine, I guess," Nya yawned. "What're you reading?"

Maria turned the pages toward her, showing a well illustrated image of Seraphina's face. "It's the book mom lent me, the one that has Seraphina in it. Mama was right, she and I are really are carbon copies."

"Well, just because you look alike doesn't mean you are the same person," Nya pointed out. Her answer had the Pink Ninja lower head and sigh. "Did I say something wrong, Maria?"

"No, I've just been thinking… We're learning new things, I'm gonna start training harder and with my powers, Kai and Lloyd are getting better control of theirs and Jay found his gem. But the enemy is getting stronger too. So what I'm really trying to say is-"

"Guys! Guys, open up!" Jay screamed as he pounded on the door. "We've got a situation, we've got a situation!"

The girls sprinted to the door and opened it up to have Jay flop onto the floor, similar to a previous incident that they started to remember. Zane and Cole slid into the doorway and helped him up, their mouths open and ready to speak, but the girls linked the pieces together and explained for them.

"Let me guess," Nya said, "Lloyd and Kai are missing and you already told Sensei and Misako about this so we can find them?"

"And considering how last time this played out, instead of having Ronin take us to Hiroshi's Labyrinth to search for a nonexistent beast, we're going their to save them from realistic cannibals that must've snuck aboard the ship and want to eat them again?" Maria finished.

"Affirmative," Zane replied. "We've set course and will be approaching it soon. Be prepared for whatever challenges we may come across."

"And most importantly, don't tell Ronin. I don't want to deal with that guy again," Cole said. With two nods in reply, the guys left them, allowing them to immediately start preparing. Nya had gathered two things: her sword and her gi. Maria, on the other hand, was stuffing her brown leather messenger bag with a variety of items; some of which would be useful, some which would most likely be unused.

"You don't have to pack for a recovery mission. It's not like we're going someplace that'll take weeks to reach."

"I know," she replied while pulling her gi out from her suitcase, "but I wanna help the team as much as I can. So I'm gonna do my best to be prepared and help out, no matter what happens to me." Maria ran into the bathroom and prepared to change, leaving Nya in deep thought.

'You're gonna help us alright. Just don't forget about yourself, you're part of the team too.'

* * *

Lloyd and Kai had woken up in the most unusual manner. Having young hibagons jump up and down them startled them, making them jump themselves in concern something was wrong. They looked at the where they were; a treetop high above the ground of the Jewel, with glossy leaves and an assorted pile of fruit that laid at their feet.

Kai put a hand on Lloyd's shoulder and said, "Okay, I'll admit this was cute. The little guys waking us up so we could have breakfast in bed is kind of adorable."

"But where's the father?" Lloyd questioned. "He wouldn't just leave us here with his kids. He's gotta be nearby somewhe-"

 **KABOOM!**

The ninja snapped their heads to the sound of a loud explosion, worried thoughts slipping into their minds. Whatever that was loud, but most importantly, it was very close by.

Distant but mumbled voices were approaching them down below. They quickly ducked down and gently pushed the young down to hide amongst the leaves with them.

"I'm telling you, Jorōgumo, this is getting ridiculous!" a voice cried out that was quickly paired up with Kitsune as he stepped into view. Behind him was the spider woman they encountered inside of Ogui, who was Jorōgumo as she responded by thumping him on his head.

"It's Kitsune!" Kai whispered to Lloyd. "I thought we clobbered that freak."

"I guess it'll take more than a combined basic attack to take him down. He's tougher than Harionago, so he'll be harder to take on."

"So let's get both of them with the element of surprise!" Kai was ready to jump down and attack, but Lloyd quickly pulled him down into hiding. "What was that for?!" he hissed.

"We should wait in case they say something about what they're planning."

Kai had shot him a look and asked, "Really? You really think that they'll just _happen_ to reveal if not their main evil plan, a smaller but important one, as we happen to be hiding above them?"

"Why'd you have to hit me so hard, Jorōgumo?" Kitsune whined as he rubbed his head. "One of these days, I swear you'll hit me so hard, my head will crack open and my brain will fall out. Then King Onryō's personal guard will fall to pieces because of the loss of a brilliant mind!"

"How can we morn the loss of something that never existed in the first place?" she snapped back. "You need to stop whining and help me take care of that Hibagon and his annoying brats, and as your superior, I demand it."

"I will," he said with a slight pout, " but you could be nicer since I have to catch a grumpy beast that could rip me to shreds. Why isn't Harionago doing this anyway? Catching creepy demons and monsters are her specialty."

"Harionago is strengthening her base with the ashes of the Hō-o that you found; her army will be the first to strike when the first battle of the war begins. Now we need a fur sample from both an adult and young hibagon to boost the life span of our fighters."

"Maybe we could use it to fix that thing you call 'a face,'" Kitsune said without giving it a thought. He quickly tried covering his mouth as he realized what he said, but it was too late.

Jorōgumo let out a moan as four spider-like legs bursted out from her back and snatched up the fox in its hairy grip. The ninja, who were watching the scene unfold, turned pale at the disturbing action. They shook harder as she pulled him close to face and locked all three of her eyes with his pair of two.

"You listen to me now. This face has seen many things, had many expressions displayed, and had many things done to it. It didn't deserve to sob uncontrollably when everything was taken from it, it didn't deserve to be turned into something so hideous, and after almost 4,000 years, it will never deserve to be disgraced by the words of something so crushable and unimportant! Understand?"

"Un-understood, m-m-miss," Kitsune replied with his tails between his legs. He was flung to the ground, allowing him to crawl away and say, "I'll start searching the trees for the Hibagon."

Lloyd quickly pulled Kai away from the edge to whisper to him, "We gotta get these guys out of here!"

"How? They'll notice us, and I don't wanna get in a fight with the spider woman."

"I don't either. But we have to act quickly or else they're gonna-"

 **KABOOM!**

In an instant, the tree broke and caught the ninja off guard, sending them to their doom. They quickly regained their senses and used their airjitzu to catch the Hibagon's kids, landing gently on the ground to face the two villains that became aware of their presence; however, behind Jorōgumo was the giant tarantula they had also encountered before.

"Nice of you humans to 'drop in,'" she said sweetly. "Especially since my beloved Tsuchigumo is frisky today and is tired of knocking over trees instead of playing with someone."

Kai and Lloyd unsheathed their swords, ready to protect and fight. "That's too bad, especially since we're gonna squash your bug before you can get a chance to even lay a finger on the hibagons."

"I smell a fight coming!" Kitsune said in a singsong voice. "But it's too bad that we have the upper hand."

"That's what you think!" In a flash of red light, Kai had his gem activated and was ready to fight with his armor. "Ready, Lloyd?"

"You take care of the big guy, I'll protect the kids!"

"Then fight!" In a swift motion, Jorōgumo had lunged at the Green Ninja with her fang bared, and pinned him to the ground.

* * *

Our other heroes were flying high above Hiroshi's Labyrinth on dragon back, searching for a safe place land and began their search. For the past 20 minutes.

"I'm just saying, Nya," Jay called over to her, "if there's cannibals down there, then Zane should be the one to land first and check to see if it's okay. Even if he gets caught, they can't eat a nindroid. Plus the rest of us could move on to plan B."

"Jay, how _did_ you ever become ninja, seriously?" Cole asked.

"It's called survival of the fittest for a reason! Zane could find a way back to us if he got caught."

"I understand you're frightened by the possibility that something dangerous might befall us if we all go down there," Zane replied, "but it would unwise to be split apart."

"Then it's settled. We stay together, no matter what," Nya said. "My brother's in this jungle, and I'm not leaving without him."

Maria, who was sitting behind her, put a hand on her shoulder in comfort. "Nya, I know you're worried about Kai and Lloyd. I'm scared about what could be happening to them, but I've seen them in action; they're amazing and strong. I just know they're okay!"

 **KABOOM!**

"….well, that was poorly timed," Maria sighed.

Zane flew ahead of the group and took the lead. "Everyone, head to that explosion!"

They followed his lead at full speed, with Nya quickly turning her head back and shouting, "Do you still think they're okay?!"

"I don't know! But don't you have faith in your brother?!"

* * *

Lloyd and Jorōgumo were locked in battle, he threw her off to the side and side tackled Kitsune, who was trying to reach the hibagon young. He used this opportunity to throw the fox demon at the spider woman, making them both fall back. They scrambled to get back up, Jorōgumo especially, as she shot out a string of web from her mouth and snatched Lloyd's sword from his hand.

She swung it over shoulder and gave out a dark laugh. "Now what do you plan to do?"

He arched an eyebrow and deadpanned, "Try not to barf after seeing that."

Jorōgumo blushed in embarrassment, but quickly stopped the moment by shooting Kitsune a look as he was holding in a laugh. "Yeah, well…well I won't stand to be embarrassed like this!" She grabbed Kitsune back the neck and threw him at the Green Ninja, who was quick to let out his claws to attack.

Lloyd countered by shooting a blast of energy at the fox, sending him flying to the side; however, he was caught off guard by the distraction and was given a swift kick in the gut, making him hold it in pain. Another kick swept underneath him, making him fall and be pinned down once more by Jorōgumo, sword pointed at his throat and spider legs slowly digging into his wrists to keep them from moving.

"Do you give up, boy?"

"Ninja never quit!" he shot back. "And I still have Kai!"

"Oh, do you now?" She sidestepped enough for him see Kai was pinned down just like him by the Tsuchigumo, helpless and armor broken. "It's hopeless," she said while getting back into position. "Your time is finally up!"

She raised his sword high above her, ready to thrust it down when a high pitched scream came from above, getting closer and knocking her down to side. Lloyd quickly got up and reclaimed sword, realizing Jay had fallen on top of her and quickly hopped up with a smile on his face.

"Lloyd, you're okay!" he cried out. He looked back on what he landed and immediately had his face turned to disgust. "Ugh! I landed on the spider woman?! And-and she has-"

"Yes, Jay, those spider legs are connected to her," Lloyd said, with a roll of his eyes. "So..how?"

"Word of advice. When you're arguing too much on dragon back, you may loose concentration and end up falling without warning."

"Well, you saved me and Kai…wait a minute! We gotta help Kai!" He turned to ran to his friend's aid, but he stopped as the other ninja had seemingly helped him out and we're now cornering the beast against a tree with their weapons.

"Guys, over here!" Lloyd called to them, which they immediately responded to and ran over to where he stood.

"You're alright!" Maria said while pulling him in for a hug. "We were all so worried! Did the cannibals bring you here?"

He scratched the back of his neck as he tried to find an answer. "Not exactly… It's kinda hard to explain-"

The sound of a pained howl made them all turn to see Kitsune hold Fuzzball by his arm with a firm grip. "Get away from him!" Lloyd shot a ball of energy of him, making him jump out of the way, both Fuzzball and Kitsune unharmed.

"Why so tense?" he replied with a shrug of his shoulders. "The little guy was shedding, I was just brushing the loose hairs off."

Zane leaned in and asked, "May I ask what is happening?"

Kai answered him. "Just to sum it up, a Hibagon and his family lives here, and these two are getting fur samples from them to help their armies."

"How?" Cole asked. "I don't get how that works."

"We'll explain more later," Lloyd said. "Maria, you protect the kids. The rest of us need to drive these guys out of here. Now go!"

They broke up and did as ordered. The six of them combine their attacks and shot bursts of power at the Tsuchigumo, having Jorōgumo charge in the center of the attacks and block them all with her legs. Her eyes flashed with anger as she screamed, "You will regret hurting my son!"

"Well maybe you should've thought twice before coming here and making trouble!" Nya shot back.

"And you humans should know that _you're_ in trouble now!" Kitsune replied as he stood by Jorōgumo. "All I can say is thank you for helping us win."

The ninja eased up with confused looks on their faces. What did they mean "helping us win?" They've been fighting them ever since this whole mission to defeat Onryō, so how were they helping them? Their thoughts were interrupted as a howl came from the trees and a figure fell from the sky, landing behind the ninja.

The Hibagon let out a howl full of anger as he pounded his chest and glared down at the villains. Cole nudged Lloyd and whispered, "Just to be clear, the big guy is on our side, right?"

"Uh, right."

Excluding Kai, the ninja gave out a breath of relief at his answer. Jay was brave enough to turn back and yell at it. "Alright, big guy! Let those creeps have it!"

But the Hibagon didn't give them a beat down like they hoped. Instead, he pulled a few furs off his arm and handed it to them in a very polite way. They snatched it up and quickly teleported away, leaving behind wide open mouth ninja who were utterly shocked and confused.

"What the heck was that?!" Kai shouted at the Hibagon as he walked over to pick up his young. "When he said, 'Let them have it,' he didn't mean give them the thing that would help their army get stronger! Are you even listening to me?!"

The Hibagon did nothing but extended a free hand to all of them for them to climb on. After an exchange of looks from Lloyd, the ninja climbed on and quickly held on tight as the Hibagon swiftly climbed up a tree. From there, they could see all of Hiroshi's Labyrinth, but there was large areas of trees knocked down or crushed.

Lloyd's eyes widened in realization, he turned to face the Hibagon. "I get it now. You knew what Kitsune and Jorōgumo wanted, so you gave it to them so they would stop hurting the balance of the jungle. Is that it?"

A deep howl confirmed his theory, as the others looked at Lloyd. "You know what this thing is saying?" Cole asked.

"It's more like I understand what he's feeling. Also, I'm sorry Kai and I lied to you about the Hibagon. We figured the less who knew, the better."

"Plus, Ronin was staring us right in the eye while he had a weapon in his hands, so the safest thing was to lie," Kai added.

"Safest thing for these little cuties.." Maria asked while picking one up and snuggling it, "or was it the safest thing for you?"

"Well, for all of us when you look back at how Ronin can get."

They all laughed at this, but quickly ended as Lloyd stopped with a worried look in his eye. "I don't get what their planning," he said aloud. "Getting pieces of other creatures for their own benefit, almost killing us…I just don't understand how this all helps them win Chaos."

"But we can figure it out, right?" Maria asked.

"Of course we will!" Jay exclaimed. "We're not gonna back down because we don't know somethings and they do. We're stronger and resourceful. What could they know that we don't which could affect everything?"

* * *

 **Meanwhile in the Dying Kingdom….**

A puff of smoke appeared in the throne room as Jorōgumo and Kitsune waved it away. They set the fur strands of the stone table and looked back on their king, he slept peacefully and looked unaware of what they were going through.

"Do you think Onryō will punish Goryō when he finds out that we've been dealing with two missions at once?" Kitsune asked.

"I'm not sure, but it doesn't matter. The king doesn't have enough power to do that, not as long as Seraphina's reincarnated form is still weak in power. We can't do anything while the bond is intact."

"I beg to differ," a voice said from behind them. They turned their heads to see Harionago walking toward them, a smug look plastered on her face. "While I was out, I happened upon a few humans who were talking about this 'exhibit' that seems to have information on us."

"What sort of information?" Jorōgumo asked.

"After threatening them, they told me it had information on Oni, me, and Seraphina. They even mentioned a strange glass clock that had seven dots on it. Does that ring any bells to you two?"

Both let out a gasp and looked at each other in disbelief. "Is that what I think it is?" Kitsune asked.

"It is," Jorōgumo confirmed. "And we will head to this exhibit tonight."

* * *

 **And cut! Hope you guys had a great New Years, and I hope we all have an awesome 2017! Go to my poll that's at the top of my profile if you haven't voted for your favorite oc yet, ask questions you have about the story, whether it be the development or how I came up with the cast. Anything!**

 **Next chapter on Ninjago: Legend Reborn….**

 **Legends Lost In Time**

 **Until then, God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good.**


	22. 21: Legends Lost In Time

**Disclaimer: Ninjago: not mine. Story idea and ocs: mine.**

 **My people, I'm back! Just a heads up, I've got exams in two weeks, so there will NOT be a chapter this weekend. I'll get back on schedule next week. Also, if you haven't voted, do so now as the poll will be taken down this Saturday.**

 **And since there won't be an update as regularly scheduled, it's time for something BIG!**

* * *

 **Chapter 21: Legends Lost In Time**

The ninja had quickly flown back to the Bounty and told Sensei of their predicament. But even he couldn't figure out what Onryō's forces were planning, leaving them to try and solve the mystery the old fashion way. They spent what felt like days on reading and observing every scroll and book that could give them information, but there wasn't anything helpful in the slightest.

"This is pointless!" Jay shouted, breaking the silence in the bridge and having everyone snap their heads in his direction. "We're not getting anywhere by reading. The only thing this is doing is putting me to sleep!"

"I'm sure we'll find something," Maria replied cheerily.

"Oh, yeah? Have you found anything in the past hour?"

"It's been only 30 minutes…and no." She lowered head and buried her face back into her book.

"Patience, Jay," Sensei said as he put a hand on his shoulder. "The answer we seek is not always found so simply, even by the wisest man."

"Sensei, don't you remember what we told you?" Lloyd asked. "Onryō is planning something, and he knows something that we don't. How can we be patient when possibly everything is at risk?"

"I'm with Lloyd," Kai said, "they have a gem and they got what they were looking for to help them. Lloyd still can't control his gem and Jay hasn't unlocked his power at all, so I think it'd be best to say that we're hopeless."

"I'm afraid I must agree, the probability of us defeating them in our next encounter is not in our favor." Zane lowered his head and whispered, "I also feel this is partly my fault for not having a real soul or heart."

"We don't know that," Misako said with a look that questioned if they really lost all hope, especially after all the hardships they've conquered. "We know what we're fighting and how to keep the enemy from getting stronger. And we have the one person that can defeat Onryō: Maria."

"But she can't use her powers," Cole said, making her flinch at his words without anyone noticing, "she's still learning. Then we have to see if she can do spinjitzu, airjitzu, summon an elemental dragon-"

 **SLAM!**

They turned to see her holding her book closed between both hands after slamming it close. Not making any eye contact with anyone, she walked out of the bridge with another slam as she closed the door. Everyone's eyes widen slightly at this; this was a new sort of behavior that was displayed by her.

"Is she mad at us?" Nya asked. "I've never seen her like this."

"I have once," Lloyd replied, "but then she started crying." He tensed up after realizing what he said and slowly turned his head at Cole, eyebrow arched and frown displayed.

"What?! What'd I do? I just said she can't use her powers!"

"And she's well aware of that, but you can't put it in a way that might sound too harsh to her," Lloyd explained.

 **RING, RING! RING, RING!**

The phone had interrupted the conversation, having Misako pick it up and answer. "Destiny's Bounty," she answered. Whoever was on the other side must've had a serious case as Misako's face fell slowly, indicating that the news were indeed very grave. "Thank you, I'll tell them right away."

"Is there trouble?" Nya asked as she hung up the phone.

"I'm afraid so. Dr. Saunders called to tell us of a possible break in tonight at the museum. He wants you down there to guard the _Legends Lost In Time_ exhibit."

They all quickly darted for the door and prepared to take off, ready to help their beloved city of New Ninja-

"Just a minute," Wu said as they froze in position. "Today's lesson focuses on finding the answer we seek. It is never found simply by even the wisest man, yet it has been there all along."

"Yeah, got it, Sensei!" Jay shouted as they broke free from their positions and ran out the bridge with a slam of a door.

* * *

The museum had been closed early, and from the looks of it, it was by force as police cars were parked in front. The ninja walked in to see Dr. Sanders talking to a police man, but he quickly ended the conversation and ran towards the ninja. "Oh, ninja!" he said with a tremble. "I'm so happy you came!"

"Um, Dr. Saunders? If you already called the police, why did you call for us too?" Lloyd asked.

"Because I was attacked in the woods with an employee of mine by this crazy, purple-haired lady!"

The ninja gasped and shared a look as they knew too well that meant Harionago. They turned their heads to face him again as the leader asked,"Can you start from the beginning of the story?"

"Well, I was going through the woods to relax myself and my employee. We started talking about how the exhibit is done and ready for grand opening when…BOO! She popped out and had us in a tight grip with her hair and asked us many things about the exhibit. Then she left as she muttered something about…uh, Joni…no I think it was-"

Kai finished Sanders's sentence and said, "Jorōgumo."

"Yes! Then I thought that maybe they would sneaky in here tonight. I called the police to keep an eye out in the city for sneaky-looking people."

"Well, you did the right thing," Lloyd said before turning back to his team. "We'll stay in the exhibit until tomorrow in case they come."

"The whole night?!" Jay asked, completely appalled at the idea that they would be staying in a creepy exhibit for hours.

"We don't have another choice, it's the best thing to do since we know who might be breaking in."

"FINNNEEE!" Jay whined before walking with the others to the exhibit.

As they walked down the hall, Cole slowed down to walk next to Maria, who was walking alone at the back of the group. "Hey, about earlier..I'm sorry. I didn't mean to offend you or anything so-"

"You didn't hurt my feelings," she interrupted with no emotion in her voice. "I just needed a quiet place to think about things. You were all getting kinda loud." She cut him off as she picked up her paced and walked beside Lloyd.

They finally came across the doors to the exhibit and flung them open. It had underwent major changes as there was more artifacts, mannequins, paintings and scrolls on display. Everything had a description, which would work in their favor, considering that they might come across some of these monsters. Maria had locked on to the clock and immediately walked over to touch it when a hand grabbed ahold of her to stop.

"I know where you're going, and I don't want to see you with more pink hair," Lloyd said firmly.

"It's not that, it's just…maybe we could fine out something else about this thing?"

"Ewww! Guys, come look at this painting!" Jay shouted from across the room. They walked over where he stood and faced a painting of a..person? It was hard to tell for their face was disfigured and their skin was a sickly white. The hair was stringy and, due to the being having somewhat of a large forehead, made it look like they were balding.

"That is one ugly guy," Kai said.

"She."

"What?"

"He's a she," Nya corrected him as she was reading the description. "It says here that it's actually a woman named Oiwa. This part is kinda weird; it says that she's an onryō, but that can't be possible."

"I fail to see how it isn't possible," Zane said. "As we were researching, I came across information that suggests that how animals of a same species vary, the same goes for oni or kitsune."

"Wait a minute…. So our Onryō, the Demon King, is actually part of a species of demon?" Cole asked.

"That is what I just said, more or less."

"Why didn't he give himself a name other than Onryō?" Jay asked. "That's like a naming a cat 'Cat,' or a dog 'Dog.' He should've named himself something intimidating like Overlord or King Bloodthirsty."

"Well, why don't you tell him your suggestions in person, Jay?" Kai snapped to get the Blue ninja to quiet down. It worked as he shrunk back at the thought. He turned to his sister and asked, "What else does it say?"

"It says that she was killed by her husband and ended up with a hideous appearance as proof of this. She came back as an onryō, looking like this…forever."

Maria spoke up, "I kinda feel bad for her. Having to look like a monster when you were killed by a real one. It's so cruel that this happened because she couldn't help it if she stood out from the crowd and believed in different things."

"Um..Maria," Nya muttered, "….the description doesn't say anything like that."

A silence fell among the group, all on eyes were on the Pink Ninja who had lowered her head. They waited for her to respond after saying that possibly personal statement, but she ignored what she had said by walking towards the doors.

"Hey, where're you going?" Lloyd asked.

"The Bounty," she replied without turning back to face them. "Since we're spending the night here, I think it's best to get food and drinks now so we won't have any issues with that later on."

"Oh…okay then. Do you want me to come with you?"

"I can manage," she said before slamming the door like she had done today. The ninja just glanced at each other, searching for an answer. They didn't know what they did wrong that made her like this. They were just curious.

* * *

Night had fallen and the witching hour came. In the darkness, three figures appeared on the empty streets of New Ninjago City. They were in awe, even as the area was empty, they lost themselves in the bright lights that still shone in the dark of night.

"Jorōgumo, you're old," Kitsune said, "so you must know how long we've been asleep."

"Well, Kitsune," she replied as she struck his head, "I can't say for sure since we've never been to the human villages that often. But I suppose it's been 8,000 years; everything looks as just as the humans said they would accomplish in the future."

"So does this mean man have been on the moon?" Harionago asked. "Or they've found a cure to every disease that ever was?"

"I can't say I wouldn't be surprised, they seem to have even found a way to make themselves a bigger target with all these lights." She turned back to Harionago and asked, "So where is this 'exhibit' you mentioned?"

"The humans said something about it being in a 'museum,' whatever that is."

"I think we can find it," Kitsune called over from the other side of the street, as he was drawn to a closed Mr. Chen's Noodle House's flashing lights. "Everything in this time seems to have everything labeled as to what they are, like this place. By the way, it's been a while since we had some quality noodles, so maybe we could sneak in and-"

He got cut off as Jorōgumo walked over and grabbed hm by his collar, choking him in the process. "E-easy on the neck!" he chocked out. "I'm carrying a gem, and I don't think Goryō would be happy if you made me drop it!"

She released him in the middle of the street and started to scold him. "How many times must I tell you? I'm the superior here, and you should be more like Harionago and accept my status!"

"I accept it! I just hate it when you act like such a little-!" He stopped himself as he noticed two lights approaching them at great speed. He screamed and quickly hid behind Jorōgumo, who was also stunned by the lights. Harionago was quick to get in front of both of them and formed her hair into a large drill-like shape.

 **CRASH!**

She had impaled the semi truck at its center, causing the driver to get out and yell at the punks who did this. He stopped at the sight of the monsters before him and ran away screaming. They had gotten out of their trance and began observing the strange beast before them.

"I've never seen anything so clean on the inside!" Kitsune remarked as he hopped in and sprawled himself on the seats. "The mouth and tongue of it is so soft and furry….I wonder if it's some sort of disease!" He quickly hopped out and put some distance between it and him.

"It's got a magnificent coat!" Harionago commented. "I wonder if that human tamed this beast so he could show off the work he did on it. Even _I_ can't clean up my soldiers this nicely after battle."

"And it's attack to blind its opponents worked very well! I couldn't move as it was charging at us!"

"Can I keep it, Jorōgumo?"

A siren was heard in the distance, and around the corner came flashing blue and red lights. Jorōgumo quickly grabbed her comrades and shot a string of webbing at a billboard, having them swing atop a building.

"Why'd you do that?!" the thorn-haired demon hissed. "I was going to keep that beast!"

"It's dead!" she snapped back. "You killed it when you saved me and Kitsune, and now we've wasted time admiring that thing. I sense the defenders of this village will come and have us fail our mission if we keep getting distracted!"

"Alright, we'll get back on the mission. Right, Kitsune? …Kitsune?"

The female demons turned to see the fox staring at the billboard which advertised:

 **Legends Lost In Time! Come see it now at the Ninjago Museum of Natural History! Found on 368 Sakura Avenue!**

"Hey, maybe that's where the exhibit is!" Harionago exclaimed.

"You're right!" Kitsune replied. "Just one thing…what's an 'avenue?'"

* * *

"You'll never take me alive, you purple-haired psychopath! Never!"

"Jay, stop playing with the statues!" Nya scolded.

"But I'm bored, and I wanna practice what I'll say when Harionago and Jorōgumo get here." He stopped as he gestured to the statue of the thorn-haired demon, "This is practically saying, 'Practice on me! Pretend what you'll say to me!'"

"Yeah, but I bet you'll end up cowering and use Nya as a shield!" Kai said as he was leaning against the wall.

"I will not! She's my girlfriend, I respect her and wish no harm upon her! Besides, I would use Cole as a shield if it came to that."

"What?!" the earth ninja said as he stomped up to Jay. "Why me?!"

"You're super strong, you could protect me."

"Uh huh, or you could do the smart thing and _use your elemental shield!_ "

"…oh, right, we have that."

They all groaned and face palmed at the Blue Ninja. Lloyd, on the other hand, was curious as one ninja was still on the side of the room, laying down as she stared at the painting of Seraphina. He walked over and sat down next, getting her attention as she turned his head towards him while still remaining on the floor.

He tried to start a conversation and asked, "Are you trying to sleep? It's fine if you do."

"No, I'm just thinking," she whispered back.

"About what?" he asked as he laid down beside her.

"Just..things."

"Well, what sort of things?"

"My training, who I was before, my powers," she replied while looking back up.

"I see. Does any of this relate to your earlier behavior?" Lloyd asked as he stared up at the painting with her.

"….yes. I'm just wondering…I'm way behind on my training compared to you guys, and you all seem so scared about what's going to happen. I've been thinking that maybe I should….I should try to do this on my own so I won't hold the team back."

"Don't say that!" he said while keeping the conversation at a quiet level. "You're not holding us back, you're the reason we started this mission. Before, we had nothing to do, so you kinda saved us from boredom. And everyone gets sacred about things they don't understand, so we're not actually freaking out because we don't know what's in store for us.

"And I don't want you to feel like you're a burden, because this isn't your old town or school. None of us are going to to outcast you because you're different and still learning. I don't know why they didn't like you, but we like you and we want to know more about you. So stop comparing yourself to us, Seraphina, and stop hiding, alright?"

He turned back to face her and immediately tensed up as tears were streaming down her face. He got up scratched the back of his neck as he tried to explain himself. "I..uh..I didn't mean to sound harsh, but I just want you to stop thinking little of yourself and-"

Lloyd was cut off as Maria had wrapped her arms around him and was hugging him tightly. He could feel her cold tears drip off his shoulder as she whispered, "Thank you, Lloyd. I'll be stronger…for you."

He smiled and hugged her back, feeling this warmth overcome him. It all felt familiar…like this had happened before.

"Ouch!" Maria shrieked as she pulled back from Lloyd, having the others stop and stare.

"What's wrong? Did I hurt you?" he asked with deep concern.

"Your gem is hot!"

He looked down on his chocker to see his gem glowing a bright green. Carefully, he gave it a quick touch and could feel intense heat in that little touch. "Guys, anyone have an idea what's going on?!"

"The most logical answer is that your gem has acquired a sudden amount of energy!" Zane exclaimed.

"Is that even possible?" Kai asked.

" **Is it going to turn into a laser!?"** Jay screamed before hiding behind Cole.

Lloyd's gem was now shaking furiously, having everyone, except Maria, hid behind their elemental shields and hope this wouldn't harm their teammate. A blinding light erupted from it, having everyone close their eyes until it had ended. When it was over, they opened their eyes to see a holograph of a boy Lloyd's age wearing a long green cloak, as he was fumbling with a glass clock, very similar to the one on display.

"Who the heck is that?" Cole asked to no one in particular.

"O-Oli-Oliver?" Maria answered slowly, but it was more of a question to herself than an answer to Cole. Her head immediately snapped up and she answered with more confidence. "That's his name, Oliver! He's the boy I saw in my vision that one time!"

"You mean the one that you said looked liked Lloyd?" Nya asked. "But you said it was a distraction from Onryō."

"No," Lloyd said, having everyone look back at him. "She's right because…because I've been having these dreams, and there's these voices that I've been hearing inside my head. I-I also have a theory that might explain why I've been experiencing them."

" _Oliver!"_ a voice from the hologram called, making the boy, Oliver, look back and smile.

He waved back and called, _"Seraphina! I'm over here!"_ He was answered as she stepped into view. They gasped as she sat beside him, her eyes were just like Maria's. Her voice had a sweet motherly tone that could lull anyone into slumber.

Oliver and Seraphina pulled each other in a tight hug, faces nuzzling each other like mother and child. _"What're you doing all by yourself?"_ she asked with a slight chuckle.

 _"I was just checking out the clock,"_ he replied as he pulled back and held it up to her face. _"It's kinda funny, it never shows the time. Is it broken?"_

" _No, silly. It's much more than that, but I can explain after we come back from our journey."_ She took the clock from and began to walk away.

" _Hang on, Seraphina!"_ Oliver said as he hopped up. _"What's the motive of our journey this time?"_

" _Don't you remember? We're going to find the other gem bearers!"_

The holograph ended and dissolved into green particles that faded away. Everything was silent as they were unsure what to ask or what to do after seeing…that.

"I-I remember.." Lloyd whispered, breaking the silence. "I remember going to some place in the woods that day, and, and,…and we stopped to sleep under a tree. It was cold, so she let me use her hair to keep me warm and…she really loved me."

"Lloyd, are you okay?" Maria asked. She pointed at his eye and said, "You're crying."

He quickly wiped it away as the others gathered around him. They asked him how this was possible, what this could mean. Without knowing the three sets of eyes that had been hiding behind the exhibit doors, he decided to give them the only that answer to everything. Why the gems connected to them, why there was memories that felt familiar to them, why he felt protective of Maria.

"Guys…we've all met before. And now…we're all reincarnated."

* * *

 **Question time!**

 **My buddy J. Walker- Gordon asks, "How did you get the idea for this story?"**

 **During the Tournament of Elements, I thought for sure they would add a ninja to the team. I thought it would be a pink girl ninja, because that's what seemed to make sense to me. When that didn't happen, I started a rough draft of a fanfic story. But the outcome was VERY Mary-Sue and cliché: Maria was originally Rose, a descendant of the elemental master of spirit, Seraphina. She was left under the care of her aristocratic grandmother who hated her mom and trained her to be a perfect lady and one day marry a rich guy by force. Then she ended up meeting Lloyd and fell in love with him while exploring the downtown world of Ninjago and finding herself, yadda yadda.**

 **It didn't feel right to me.**

 **So I held off the idea when idea the Skybound sets came out. I knew right away djinn mythology inspired it, so I thought, "Why aren't they using Japanese or Chinese mythology since that's the culture Ninjago is based on?" So I began looking at Japanese mythical creatures, which were kinda scary looking, so that's probably why it would be hard to add them in. But I realized a lot of them didn't really have an origin story. Harionago was just described as a demon with deadly hair, nothing about how she came to be.**

 **That's when I decided to write a story that explained the vague backgrounds, with my personal favorite demon as the main villain, Onryō. Then it sorta clicked that he would need an opposite to combat, so I fixed my Pink Ninja idea and linked it with my demon story. The result was the birth of Maria; a girl from a small town who's set on starting fresh, but is pulled into the chaos of spirits and demons, a world she loved reading in her books as a kid. Plus I eliminated the love story beacuse I want to keep this in touch with the canonical events that happen in the show. But the main result was Ninjago: Legend Reborn!**

 **Sorry if it's lengthy, but that's how it all happened.**

 **Ask questions, review, tell a friend to check this story out.**

 **Next chapter on Ninjago: Legend Reborn….**

 **Into The Woods**

 **Until then, God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good.**


	23. 22: Into The Woods

**Disclaimer: Ninjago: not mine. Story idea and ocs: mine.**

 **I've got three things to talk about that are important, in one way or another. But I wanna get into this chapter, (and I'm stuck babysitting my sister and her friend) so the explanation is at the bottom. This includes: my tumblr page, Valentine's Day arc, poll results.**

 **Now on with the story!**

* * *

 **Chapter 22: Into The Woods**

"And now…we're all reincarnated," were Lloyd's last words before looking back upon his teammates faces. As expected, their faces were full of shock; however, Jay was the exception as he was trembling before blowing up in three..two…one…

" **WHAAAAAAT?!"** he screamed, making them jump a little. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath in, but it didn't come out in an exhale. Rather, another scream.

" **THAT MEANS WE WERE SERAPHINA'S GUARDIANS AND WE WERE ALL POWERFUL, BUT NOW WE'RE JUST HUMANS! BUT IT CAN'T BE TRUE SINCE ZANE'S A NINDROID AND AT BEST, HE COULD BE RECYCLED, NOT REINCARNATED! STILL, THIS ALSO MEANS WE LOST OUR GEMS WHEN WE DIED AND NOW WE'VE DOOMED THE WHOLE WORRRRLLLLD!"**

After getting that out of his system, the Blue Ninja fell to his knees and began to softly cry. Nya kneeled next to him and tried to calm him down. This left three other ninja to question their leader.

"Lloyd, you've gotta be joking," Kai said with a firm tone. "We can't be reincarnated. This has to be some sort of big joke!"

"Kai, be honest with yourself," Lloyd replied. "When you first connected with your gem, you felt something inside you that told you it belonged to you before. Didn't you?"

The fire Ninja turned his head away and mutter, "Maybe…I guess I did."

"And you felt it too, Jay. Right?"

"I don't wanna talk about!" he snapped before turning his back to Lloyd.

"But this is illogical!" Zane exclaimed. "It may be true for you, Kai and Jay, but it doesn't seem to be true for me. Even when Kai's gem was in possession of the oni, he connected with it; this isn't the case for me and Kitsune."

"Well….Kitsune is a lot stronger than the oni, so he could be using his powers to actually block out the connection."

"But what're the odds we just happen to be reincarnated and meet Maria, which made us start this crazy adventure?!" Cole asked.

"Destiny has a weird way of connecting us; but it's all for a reason, a purpose," the Green Ninja explained. "I don't understand how it works either, but it's all for the better in the end. Destiny hasn't steered us down a path that was completely bad."

 _ **CREEEEEAAAKKKK….**_

The Ninja immediately got up and hopped into their fighting stances at the creak of the door. Eye signals were exchanged before they took their positions, ready to tackle the intruder.

 _ **CRRRRREEEEEEAAAAAAKKK….**_

NOW!

They leapt and held him down as he squirmed to free himself. In just a few seconds, they had him gagged with their empty Ninja Chip bags, his hands and legs were pinned down tightly to the ground. Maria had gotten up once they were sure he was unable to move, and walked to the side of the room to flip on the light switch to see the face of-

"DR. SAUNDERS?!" they shouted in unison.

The poor curator looked to be on the brink of crying, having the Ninja get off him and un stuff his mouth of their trash. Saunders sat up and wiped his eyes, whimpering out, "Why did you do this? I though we were friends!"

"Dr. Saunders, we are SO sorry!" Nya apologized. "Our instincts kicked in, and we just thought you were a thief! Why were you coming in here so slowly anyway?"

"I was carrying a really heavy clear stone case for the clock! I think I dropped when you Ninja did the sneaky attack on me."

"You mean this case?" Cole asked as he was effortlessly holding a large, square case with one hand.

"That's the one!" he said as he walked over and grabbed it from Cole. "The case was finally finished, so I thought I could put it on tonight and let you go home early."

"That's very considerate of you, Dr. Saunders.." Lloyd said as they all bowed, "...and we are really sorry we hurt you."

"Oh, that's okay, buddies!" he replied in his usual cheery tone. "I tend to have a sneaky sound to my footsteps. It's a gift and a curse!" He walked behind them, pushing them out of the exhibit and said, "Thank you for enjoying another sneaky preview!"

 **SLAM!**

The Ninja said nothing after that, and went quietly back to the Bounty. Not even "good nights" or "sweet dreams" were exchanged, rather they all went to bed with a pit in their stomach. Destiny never did lead them down a path that was inherently evil, but it had never lied to them like this. It never made them forget everything about themselves…or how they probably _did_ bring doom to Ninjago.

* * *

 **In the Dying Kingdom….**

"You idiot!" Goryō screamed as he threw Jorōgumo across the throne room and into the cave wall. She held her arm as the stinging began to spread, wincing at the pain and his harsh words. "You were right there and you backed down! This is why you're second best!"

"You're one to talk about being second best!" she shot back. "After all, you were second best for a long time. Now you still are since you're in the shadow of Onryō!"

Harionago quickly stepped in between them, after watching from the sidelines with Kitsune and Gashadokuro, and had a section of her hair pointed at both of their throats. "That's enough out of both of you! The King isn't getting any better if we keep fighting like this!"

"Oh, so now the nasal-voiced demon is gonna preach us on how we should hug it out and make friends when she couldn't do it when she was alive!" Kitsune shouted at her. The result was her jumping on top of him, the two locked in battle as they punched and scratched at each other.

"What about me?" Gashadokuro asked, his voice booming due to his large size. "I've hardly been involved in anything since we were brought back. I'm a part of this guard too!"

"Oh, shut it, you big pile of chicken bones!" Harionago shouted up to him. "You're the middle captain, and everyone knows the middle people are easily forgotten!"

"Why you-!" He picked up the two in his huge, bony hands as they continued to claw at each other. Annoyed they didn't acknowledge his action, he shook them in his hands like one would do with a pair of dice. All of them were so focused on their fighting, they failed to notice a pair of glowing, yellow eyes blink to life at the sight of this.

" **BE STILL!"** Onryō shouted.

They all stopped at his voice, and all fell to their knees and bowed before him. Even in his weak form, he was a force to be reckoned with, as his subjects were shaking ever so slightly at his shouting. **"I brought you five back to help me rule, and you fight each other?!"**

"My King," Kitsune said as he raised his head, "it's all Goryō's fault! He's been driving us away from the orders you assigned!"

"He speaks the truth!" Jorōgumo said as she stood up. "Goryō has been abusing the powers of the machine that Harionago stole. He's had us running all over this new world to find creatures, like the Hibagon, and use samples of their hair or ashes and suck the essence from them to give our armies new powers. But we're lacking in numbers; our bases are far from being halfway raised since we've been forced to find samples rather than capture new recruits!"

"Goryō, is this true?" the Demon King asked.

Said demon lowered his head and prepared to accept his punishment. "Yes, King Onryō. All of it is true."

"You…are brilliant!"

"My King!" Harionago screeched. "You allow him to get away with this?!"

"Of course; in certain cases, straying from others orders to help the welfare of a kingdom is the mark of a true leader. Well done, Goryō!

Goryō flashed the other a triumphant look before approaching the bars of Onryō's cage. "I am humbled, King Onryō. I only did what a great leader like you would do."

"Wait a minute!" Gashadokuro shouted, but quickly lowered his voice as a glare was shot at him from his superior. "There's a little issue we need to discuss that concerns Seraphina's reincarnation and her new human army."

"It can wait," Goryō said, pointing towards the entrance of the throne room. "Leave this place and go find the Tree of Wisdom in the Dark Woods."

"T-t-the Dark Woods? The very woods that posses many small, mischievous demons that can even make someone of my size tremble?! ….I think I'll pass."

"It is an order!" the King bellowed. "We need to find information on how to break the bond I share with Seraphina, and possibly find the village's location. You are almost half my size; you can just squash whatever poses as a threat to you!"

"I understand, King Onryō,"Gashadokuro sighed in defeat. He trudged out of the room with the sound of his bones scraping against the rocky ground.

"As for the four of you," Onryō said, "you will continue to find other essences. If it's a fight Seraphina wants, then we're going to give her a war."

* * *

 **The next day on the Bounty…..**

Six of the Ninja had finished their breakfast early, but they kept quiet about last night. Misako was concerned, but Sensei had assured her it was nothing to be worried about. As the teens approached the top deck, they could hear the sound of the obstacle course whirring to life. They hid in the shadows and watched as they found Maria practicing, heaving and panting as she pushed herself.

She hadn't been trained on it before; teaching her to do spinjitzu was something they planned to do later on when she was just a little bit stronger. Maria was doing very well for her first time, she hadn't been knocked off or anything. Then from nowhere, a metal peg flung into her gut and knocked her off with force.

"Maria!" Lloyd shouted as they ran towards her. He helped her up as she held her stomach. "Are you alright?"

"Yup! Never better!" she replied while standing up as though no damaged was inflicted upon her. "I think I need to train for a little while more."

"No, you need to rest. You skipped breakfast and now you're hurting yourself," he scolded her. "Why are you doing this to yourself?"

She looked at him with hope shining in her eyes. "I told you I wanted to be stronger for you, so I won't cry and give up so easily anymore. And I don't mind at all if we all are reincarnated, it just means that we'll always be together and find each other in any time or place. Ninjago is my home; I'll fight for it!"

As she walked off to the dining room, Jay was sniffling as he was touched. The others just smiled at her little speech, Lloyd feeling the most proud at what she said. Nya walked over to Lloyd and said, "She really looks up to you."

"Yeah, like a little sister," Kai agreed.

"That's very nice to hear," Sensei Wu said, the sound of his voice making them turn to see him and Misako, with a scroll in her hand. "However, we must turn our attention to our next mission."

Misako stepped forward and opened the scroll, revealing a sort of map. The destination was, of course, marked with a red' X' at the rough drawing of a tree. "This map reveals the location of the Tree of Wisdom. I'm a little unsure myself of what it could be, but we're heading there now to see if it can be of any use to us."

"This early?" Cole asked. "We just finished eating, and now you want us to put ourselves in danger already?"

"That's how life is in Ninjago," Sensei replied. "I believe a while back, the six of you were complaining on how 'boring' it was to not have any danger happen in quite some time."

Cole just stood there flabbergasted as Sensei left with a smirk on his face. "I suggest you prepare yourselves, unless you want to go back and lead a 'boring' life!"

* * *

The Bounty had parked just ahead of a forest that was shrouded in fog. The Ninja were prepared to slide down the anchor, but they were forced to wait for the Pink Ninja to come up on deck. After waiting impatiently, and almost going on ahead without her in Kai's case, Maria ran up on deck with her leather brown messenger bag slung over her shoulder.

"You do know that might get in your way in case we end up fighting, right?" Kai asked.

"Actually, being prepare for any situation is a good quality in a ninja," Wu said as he handed Zane the map.

"I think so too, Sensei!" Maria replied cheerily. "I got my first aid kit, some food and water, and my book in case we run into some weird creatures we haven't seen before. I've got us covered!"

"I'll take your word for it," Lloyd said before turning toward his team. "It's time for us to head out!" He climbed onto the anchor and began sliding down, the others following suit. It felt like miles before they reached the ground and got a clear look of the area; which they immediately regretted as they landed.

On the left, the woods looked peaceful and in color. The right side just screamed 'wicked' and was literally a void of color and life. With a gulp and a deep breath, they headed into the woods, shaking as they ventured deeper in. Through it all, they couldn't get rid of the feeling something was watching them.

"S-s-s-so what kind of creatures do you think we'll find in here?" Jay whimpered. "I'm personally hoping for something like a bunny or a unicorn. Anyone second it?"

"Really, Jay?" Cole asked appalled at how easily frightened he was. "How did you become a ninja with the courage you have? I've seen five year olds braver than you!" A death glare from Nya quieted him down and made him shrink back.

"Ignore them," she said while grabbing ahold of his hand. "I'm right here if you get scared." Jay blushed and returned a light pressure to her hand. She turned her head back and called over, "So does your book have any monsters in it that we might find here?"

"I'm checking right now," Maria called back. There was a moment of silence before she responded. "Umm, maybe you guys should look at this…"

They all turned back to her and hovered over her shoulders. The book was open to a blank page with the tile,

 **Waira: A beast of which little is known about.**

"Very peculiar," Zane said, breaking the silence. "Strange how a book has information on Seraphina, but not on this particular creature."

"Yeah, who wrote this thing anyway?" Lloyd asked.

"I did look for who wrote this, it was in the very back of the book. Someone named Basil signed it. There wasn't a last name or an initial after that."

"That's strange. What kind of author writes their first name, but not their last name?"

"Don't know, don't want to waste anymore time," Jay said loudly before marching ahead. "We should be focusing on finding that tree. If we stand around then something might get us and-" He was cut off as he bumped into the first color that was native to the forest; a red child's hand that was dangling from a tree.

He let a high pitched shriek and quickly dived behind his teammates. "MARIA! WHAT IS THAT THING?!" he shrieked.

"I'm looking, I'm looking!" she said while flipping through the pages. "It's right here in the _Disembodied and Living_ chapter!"

"Why would someone name a chapter like that?!"

"Stop screaming and she might tell you!" Kai yelled.

Maria was panting under the pressure of the situation. "Oh, we're okay!" she said as she let out a breath of relief. "This thing is an akateko, it can't hurt us."

"An aka-what now?" Cole asked.

"Akateko, a demon that doesn't eat or cause any real harm. It's stuck on one tree alone and scares people that walk under its tree."

"Which just happened to be Jay," Lloyd chuckled. "Alright, then we'll just ignore them and continue. Lead the way, Zane."

The nindroid began to head to the front to lead when Jay stepped in front of him. "Before we keep walking, I want to know if there's any other monster that might be in these woods so I don't die of a heart attack."

Maria flipped through the pages once more and started listing descriptions of monsters that made Jay gasp at each mentioning. "Well there's one that drops out of trees and resembles a disembodied head. And here's one that screams before it jumps out at you, another that tangles your legs as you walk. Then there's another that-"

"Okay, okay! I heard enough! Off we go!" He marched over confidently with a face that showed he was struggling really hard to not let the slightest trace of fear.

This was going to be a long mission.

* * *

After a few more run ins with some akateko, the Ninja stopped under a tree for lunch. Luckily Maria packed leftovers for lunch, so eating it wasn't a problem. They were all relaxed, except for one certain ninja who put some distance between him and the group. Nya had walked over and sat next to Jay as he kept staring at his noodles.

"Aren't you hungry?" she asked. "Maria might get upset if you don't eat; she worked so hard putting this lunch together."

"I don't get it, Nya," he muttered. "All of these monsters are freaking us out, but I'm the only one who's acting like a complete chicken."

"Fear is just a natural reaction, and everyone reacts differently. It's hard to deal with, but we all need it. It's a balance: fear and courage."

"I guess," he sighed as he stood up. "I'm gonna find a stream or something, I don't wanna waste our drinking water." He walked away and as expected, Nya didn't stop him, especially as the fog was getting thicker and thicker.

He walked down a small cliff and found a stream, and just like the rest of the woods, it was a dark black. Jay kneeled down and splashed his face with the water, its cool sensation spreading across his face. He looked back on his reflection dancing in the water, anger filled up in him as he splashed it away.

'What good am I if I can't be brave?' he thought. 'I'm just a big scaredy cat that shrieks like an old lady at the drop of a hat. I'm just…not good enough.'

 **CRACK!**

The shadow of a tree was closing in him, but he was quick to jump out of the way and behind a rock to see what had caused this. A silhouette with a monstrous shape slowly came forth in his direction, making him shake and have goosebumps prick up on his arms. From the fog came colors of a dusty green that was mottled with earthy browns.

Scraping of what sounded like metal got closer as the beast came into full view. The beast was like a cow, but twice the size with long limbs that each had a claw. It was lumpy and ugly, it's red eyes locked on the ground as it sniffed it like a dog. It suddenly trusted a claw into the ground, and pulled out a squirming mice; which happened to be its prey as it threw it up in the air and caught it with its mouth.

It let out a belch before snapping its head in Jay's exact direction, at the exact rock he was hiding behind.

He quickly turned and ran. He ran so fast, he could feel the ground tearing away with every step he took, the air from in him escaping from his lungs faster than he could catch it. His face going from hot to cool as his sweat was pushed by the force of the wind, everything around him disappearing as he could only see the colors of his friends gis. Jay finally screamed at the top of his lungs, "Run for it, guys!"

They were packing things up and ready to continue on as he had screamed that warning. They were confused until they saw the beast behind him, crawling at a speed that could be considered running. The Ninja followed suit and ran as fast as they could, though it was immeasurable to the speeds Jay had reached. The beast could be heard so close behind them, that they had enough and summoned their dragons.

They bursted into the foggy sky, and kept going until they reached a clearer point above the forest. They finally caught their breath as Lloyd called roll. "Are we all here? Jay?"

"On your left."

"Maria?"

"I'm sitting right behind you, silly."

"Kai?"

"Behind you, and Zane's with me."

"Cole?"

"Over here, Green Machine."

"Nya?"

No answer.

"Nya?!" Jay and Kai shouted in unison. They all started calling her name and tried to spot her in the thick fog around them, but it was hopeless. She was no where in sight…until there was a rattling of bones that echoed.

In a puff of smoke, a giant, red skeleton with empty eyes and a crack going down his head appeared in front of them. They all quickly flew close together as the being, who was bigger than any spirit or demon they've encountered, smiled and held up a clenched, bony hand. "Is this what you're looking for?" he said as he revealed an unconscious Nya.

"Let go of my sister!" Kai shouted at the skeleton, ready to charge at him with full force.

"Or I could repay you for what you did to me, Levi!"

Kai pulled back. "W-what?"

"Playing dumb won't help! We all know you humans are reincarnated, and Onryō will know soon! So let me give you something on behalf of the Dying Kingdom!"

In a sudden motion, he lifted his other hand and swatted them like flies. They were caught off guard and were slipping into unconsciousness, the blood red color of the skeleton fading into fog as their last sight before the darkness came.

* * *

 **#1 I'm getting a Tumblr page soon, it'll have stuff about chapters and my story. But I had an idea; I've been drawing a lot to reduce my stress from exams, and it all relates back to my story. So I want your opinion about me drawing concept art of characters, art for major chapters, etc, and posting them on my page. Just wanna know who'd be interested in looking at that stuff.**

 **#2 Ahhhh, love is in the air! And the chapters after the next will be full of romance and fluff…or will it?**

 **#3 The results are in. Our top three choices from the poll have been chosen. In 3** **rd** **with 45 votes: Harionago! 2** **nd** **place, tied at 55 votes: Kitsune and Elise Psyche! Drum roll please…..at 69 votes, 1** **st** **goes to…..Maria!**

 **I'm so happy she won! I was afraid she was becoming an Anti-Sue for a second, considering she's slowly gaining strength. I'm happy she's become a lovable charater and is possibly finding a way into your hearts.**

 **Next chapter on Ninjago: Legend Reborn…..**

 **Courage's Wisdom**

 **Until then, God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good.**


	24. 23: Courage's Wisdom

**Disclaimer: Ninjago: not mine. Story idea and ocs:mine.**

 **Guys, I reached 300 views in one month! This mean so much to me, thank you all! Also, my Tumblr page will be up by Thursday at the latest; sadly it won't have art that relates to the next chapter, I'm doing that later. It will, however, have concept art of….oh, you know, three ocs of mine that have been named. Do you know who I'm talking about?**

 **Anyways, time to get in this chapter!**

* * *

 **Chapter 23: Courage's Wisdom**

"Jay… Jay, get up!"

The Blue Ninja's eyes fluttered open as he moaned with slight pain that spread through his body. Was he dead?... No, no, he was in a tree with the others, and they looked so scared. He tried sitting up and began to ask, "What are you guys-"

"SHHH!" they said as slipped on their hoods and looked up. He mimicked their action and looked at what they were focusing on; the giant skeleton was just above them, searching as he gave off a thunderous sound with each step.

"Where are _youuuuu_?" he called out, as though this was some game of hide-and-seek, but those who hid didn't want to be found. Not on their lives. "Come on out, little humans. I've still got your little friend."

"Why are we just sitting here?" Jay whispered to Lloyd. "He's got Nya! And who is he anyway?"

"His name is Gashadokuro," Maria whispered back, "and he's really strong."

"She's right, one wrong move and my sister could be squished. I don't want that to happen."

"That's why we're hiding and trying to stay quiet," Lloyd finally responded. "We attack when it's the right time."

"And by my calculations, it should be when he turns around. He'll be vulnerable and unable to counter quick enough," said Zane.

"But Nya-" Jay started.

"But nothing!" Cole hissed at him. "Yeah, she's your girlfriend, but she's our friend, too. Now's not the time for you to charge in there and save the damsel in distress, now's the time to be serious."

"I know, but-"

"That's enough, Jay," Lloyd said calmly. "We have a plan. Follow it, and we'll have Nya back, safe and sound."

"I guess I'll just leave since nobody's here," Gashadokuro said rather loudly, even for him. He turned and his bony back was exposed to the Ninja.

"Everyone, to your positions," Zane whispered. "Summon your dragons and aim at his spine."

"On my mark," Lloyd said as the five of them prepared to take flight. "Three…." Their hands were glowing.

"Two….." Maria grabbed Lloyd's shoulders and prepared to jump on with him.

"One….." Jay could only think of Nya's smile once this was all over.

"Now!" They all flew faster than they ever have, and fired a beam of their respective elements at his spine. They formed into one beam that glowed white just before it hit Gashadokuro's back, making him fall over as he screamed in pain. His body disappeared into the heavy fog, with Nya still in his hand.

"He's down! I'm gonna get Nya!" Kai flew down into where their foe had fallen. He had almost disappeared from view when a bony, red hand grabbed him and disintegrated his dragon with the strong action.

"Oh, Levi!" the skeleton said as his head dramatically emerged from the fog, Kai held right up to his face to get the full effect. "Did you think that you would give me another crack, like the one you gave me that I have to live with for the rest of my existence?!"

"Let him go!" Lloyd flew his dragon around the skeleton's head as Maria tried shooting bursts of spirit energy at him. Most swerved and almost hit her teammates, but she was able to get a few hits on him before he submerged in the fog.

"Where'd he go?" she asked as she and Lloyd glanced around. They were answered as they got grabbed and squished in the same hand as Kai. It was quickly pulled back down, readying for another attack. The others took this as a sign to fly higher up into the clearer skies for an advantage.

Jay tried the hardest to get away from this, the wind rushing from his lungs; his heart's nonstop pounding since they entered into this place, the tears that wanted to pour out from his eyes, especially after having three of his friends and his girlfriend being captured as he wasn't strong enough to help them. He just wanted it to be done and over with. This mission and being a wimp that panics all the time. Why couldn't it just end?

He finally bursted through the clouds and could see a gray, murky sky. "We did it, guys! We're okay! ….Guys?" he asked while looking around, now noticing that he was alone. "Cole, Zane, where are you?!"

Jay couldn't take much more of the silence and quickly dove back down. 'Please be okay,' he thought as the wind rushed against him. 'When I get down there you're gonna be okay, then we'll defeat that skeleton and go home. Just be okay!'

He reached the area where Gashadokuro had snatched up Kai, Lloyd, and Maria, but instead of seeing his friends, he was face to face with Gashadokuro himself. He had a wicked, bony grin plastered on his face, his hollow empty eyes just burned right through him; he couldn't tell if he was staring him down or looking around to find Zane or Cole. And he laughed; he threw his head back and laughed, his bones could be heard rattling with every cackle.

"W-w-where are my-" Jay started to ask.

"You're friends…." Gashadokuro interrupted him, "..are in good hands. Or in this case, bones!" He stood up straight, revealing his ribs that were hidden by fog no more, along with the others trapped inside. They pounded and tried sawing away at the bony prison around them, but it had no effect.

"Jay, get us out of here!" Nya screamed, now conscious and full of fear. "We need you! I need you!"

"Awww, is that whiny one your lover?" Gashadokuro said in mocking tone. "I'll tell you what, try to catch me. If you can do that before I get bored of you, your friends and Seraphina are all yours. If not, I'll be taking them as a present to King Onryō."

Before Jay could answer, he dived beneath the fog and all went silent. Jay whipped around as fast he could, when a hand swatted at him from no where. It had already faded as another swatted at him again, with much more force and speed. It kept repeating, he felt like he was being beaten around like ping pong ball. Getting hit at every second from every angle, with pain spreading from every part of him.

The flurry of attacks stopped, giving him a chance to look through his fading vision. Gashadokuro in full view as he cackled away, his friends screaming to get up; but it wouldn't help as he couldn't hear as he fell into darkness. He felt his dragon disappear from his grasp as he fell, getting swallowed up by the fog and murkiness of the gray sky.

He fell with the final image of Nya shedding a single tear for him; and, instead of a smile, she wore a frown.

"No!" he yelled as he woke up to darkness. "Nya needs me! The others need me, too! I can't give up!"

He suddenly saw visions of his life flash through his eyes, but they all reminded him how he just acted so foolishly. Using the anchor to bust in the Darkly's School for Bad Boys, dressing up as a girl to catch the mysterious Samurai, asking Nya on date and telling her he got pricked by Fangpyre venom at the worst possible moment, and every moment he panicked and freaked out. Every time he freaked out, he didn't always help the situation. He sometimes made it worst.

" _Are you giving up?"_ a familiar voice asked. No surprise, he turned and faced the fancy girl once more, but she continued to talk without giving him a chance to speak. _"A lot of your ideas and actions may make you appear and feel foolish, but they're actually a good example of courage. You don't know this yet, but you learn so much from them."_

"Oh, I've learned something alright," he said with his volume getting slightly higher. "I've learned that I make people laugh at me when I try to act all brave, but that's not getting me anywhere. I try to build things, come up with clever ideas, be myself, and people always laugh!"

She walked closer to him and smiled. " _You may think that way, but I've always known my Peter to take action without giving it a thought; he just acted as fast as lighting. I was always scared he would get himself killed, but he was blessed with wisdom; and now, you have that wisdom."_ She held his hands and said, _"I relied on my Peter, now there's a girl who relies on you and your wisdom now, so be brave."_

He saw the light of his gem glow softly, released himself from her grip and smirked. "You make a good point, I've got someone who doesn't think I'm a total idiot; I'm her lovable goofball!" Jay felt a sensation rush through him as he thrusted his gem up and shouted, "I'm coming, Nya! I'm gonna show you I can be brave, too!"

There was a flash of light before he fell into darkness.

* * *

Jay opened his eyes for real and noticed he was falling; rather than scream, he summoned his dragon and flew back into the arial battlefield. He waited for Gashadokuro to attack, when a sharp pain went through his head. It eased for a moment as he saw a vision of him getting caught in another flurry of hits from the skeleton. It stopped and Jay took a quick look around for the oncoming attack.

It must be oncoming, he saw him getting swatted at from behind-

"Hey, blue boy!" Gashadokuro's voice echoed all around, but Jay knew what to do. He flew up and dodged the attack before it even came. Confused, Gashadokuro stepped into full view and looked around. "How did….where'd you go, you little coward?!"

"A coward?" Jay shouted from above, as he aimed at the crack on his head. "I've been fighting you even though you're super strong and as big as a mountain. But you've done nothing than act like a sissy by hiding and trying to hurt me with slap fight! Which one of us is the coward now?!"

He charged in with his dragon shooting a burst of lighting straight on the crack. For real, Gashadokuro screamed in pain as the power of that attack spread throughout his body and blasted of chunks of his old bones, freeing the Ninja. They quickly flew out of there and right by Jay, waiting for their opponent's next move. Gashadokuro wobbled and tried to maintain focus, allowing the Ninja to charge in and fire blasts of elemental power at him.

He ducked down and tried to shield himself from the blows when he stood up and screamed, "ENOUGH!" They stopped as he spoke. "I'm just not at full strength at the moment, when I am, I'll remember this and come find you! Then I'll let Goryō do the honors of destroying you like he did with-"

He was disappeared in a puff of black smoke before he even got to finish his sentence.

"Uhhh….we won!" Jay shouted.

"I guess so. He did chicken out and just left," Kai said as they flew down to the ground. "But why did he keep calling me Levi?"

As the Ninja landed on the ground, Lloyd walked over to Kai and put a hand on his shoulder. "Kai, does that name mean anything to you? Do you remember something when you hear the name Levi?"

He thought about it for a while, but lowered his head and sighed. "No, I'm sorry. It's just a name now." Kai lifted his head back up and asked, "So how were you able to dodge his attack, Jay?"

The Blue Ninja smirked and placed his hips. "Well, Kai, I unlocked my gem's power. And from what I can tell, I can see an upcoming attack; it's like the Sword of Sanctuary. I can see the future, which means you're not gonna see me panic anymore, now that I know what'll happen next."

"I'm afraid that's not its true power," a voice spoke from the fog. They all looked around until they saw green and brown emerge from the fog; and that was when the beast that had chased them came into their full view and smiled. "Hello there."

Jay shrieked and jumped behind Cole. "It's that monster! It's gonna eat us!"

The beast laughed, but it wasn't an evil laugh. It was heart full and had a warm tone to it, so did his voice as he spoke, "Oh, child, I only eat small animals. Besides, how could I eat an ally of Seraphina's reincarnation?"

They gasped in shock. Maria walked up to the beast with wide eyes, she leaned over a little when she reached him. "You…do you know me?" she asked.

"More than you know," he replied. He held out his clawed limb, carefully shook her hand and said, "I am a Waira, but you once called me Basil. It's a pleasure to see you again, Mother Seraphina."

The Ninja jumped back in shock. " _You're_ Basil!?"

"Wait a minute…" Nya said, "…why did you call her, 'Mother?' I thought Seraphina was the Spirit Queen."

"She was, but she felt it was too formal. She used terms like, 'Mother, Sister, Friend.'" Basil's eyes gleamed with tears as he looked up and he asked, "You don't remember how amazing you once were, do you?"

Maria opened her mouth to speak. "I…"

"Hold it!" Cole interrupted. He pulled the book out of Maria's bag and showed it to him."If you're Basil, that means you wrote the book we've been using. But you don't have any hands or anything to draw and write with."

"Is that so?" Basil asked with a sly grin. "I guess I have to prove my ability to you." He raised a limb and stomped it on the ground, having the fog burst past them and disappear from sight. When it was over, right behind them stood a great tree; it was in color and had fruit hanging from its branches.

"Children, I present my home to you; the Tree of Wisdom." Basil crawled over to it and used his claw to open a false knothole in the tree. He climbed in, his back legs sticking out as he continued to speak. "A few hundred years during the A.D period; after Dominance, aristocrats were on the rise and captured spirits and demons alike to do their bidding or for entertainment.

"They used us Wairas to guard their houses and important places, like ugly guard dogs," he continued on as he climbed out with a little ink jar in his mouth, set it down, took Maria's book and got to work. "Then I met Seraphina, she's the one who told me that my looks and low status shouldn't limit me from being me," Basil said as he dipped his claw in the ink and scribbled away at the book. "I chose a life of knowledge, and I used it to help her."

Basil handed the book back to Maria, who began flipping through the pages. "There's more information in here!" she exclaimed, having the Ninja hover over her shoulders. "You even wrote information on the gems."

"Let me see!" Kai said as he snatched the book. He began studying the description of his gem and frowned in confusion. "You wrote that my gem is connected to anger, but why?"

"My theory is that like our elemental powers, our gems are connected to our emotions and will be affected by them," Zane suggested.

"Very observant," Basil said with a nod. "The gems you have now are representations of joy, anger, and courage; three of the main emotions of the heart. Without one, or too much or too little of just one, the balance of a heart is thrown in danger, making it vulnerable to dark forces. The seven of you must find the remaining gems, control them and yourselves, and then will you unlock their true power and defeat the Demon King."

"Does that have anything with seeing visions projected from the gems?" Lloyd asked. "It happened to me the other day and I started to remember something. We're also trying to find this village that a diadarabotchi named Ogui told us about and-"

He stopped as a claw held to his lips. "Your hearts are connected to your memories, and your gems are connected to your hearts. When you are overcome with a strong feeling of your respective emotions, your gems may project a memory of another time you were overcome. I've already written a map for the village; however, it's been over 3,000 years since I left my woods, so it might be difficult to find it in the modern world."

"Uh…thank you," Lloyd said while gaining his senses. He turned back to his team and said, "It's time we head back to the ship."

They all nodded and started to take off. Lloyd was ready to summon his own dragon and lead his team, when he felt a tug on his leg. He looked back at Basil, who snagged his pant leg with his claw, and gave him questioning look. Basil quickly whispered to him, "You must keep the girl happy; her heart is sick and frail, the dark forces might take advantage of it."

He was ready to ask what he had meant when Maria called out, "C'mon, Lloyd! I'm riding with you!"

"Coming!" Lloyd responded. He quickly turned back to Basil, but the fog had already began to settle back in and cover the tree. Taking this a sign to leave, he summoned his dragon with Maria and led his team away from the Dark Woods.

* * *

"Come on, I wanna read it!"

"In a second, Jay."

"But I unlocked my gem, and I wanna know what-"

The Blue Ninja was whacked over the head by Sensei's staff. They had all gathered into the Bridge as Maria was observing the new pages. Jay was eager to know what his real power was, if it was even put in the book, but the whole time, he kept to look since it was taking forever.

"I finally found it," Maria replied.

"Thank the First Spinjitzu Master you did!" Kai exclaimed. "I was ready to activate my gem and squash him."

"You might've too, because when you get angry your gem activates your armor manipulation ability."

"What's my powers name?" Lloyd asked.

"Vision sharing, you have to think of how much you care about someone to activate it and look through their eyes. Finally, for you, Jay, yours is a precognition ability. You may be able to see you opponent's next attack, but you have to brave to take a risk in countering or dodging at the right time."

"All I'm hearing is that he's gonna be freaking out more," Cole said.

"I will not!" Jay exclaimed.

"Now, now…" Sensei said, "…let us not fight each other. We should be happy as we are getting stronger and wiser."

"I agree," Zane said. "I swear the next time we run into Kitsune, I'll be ready."

"So will I," Maria said, standing up. "I won't fail you guys. I'll get stronger and defeat Onryō!" she shouted as she pumped a fist in the air; however, she had accidentally shot a blast of spirit energy into the ceiling, making a new hole.

Everyone jumped as it crashed through. They all looked back at her slowly, as she kept her position, her face flushed of all color. She could feel her nerves kicking in as she tried to find an appropriate answer.

"Uhh….I can fix this."

* * *

 **Next chapter on Ninjago: Legend Reborn…**

 **Valentine's Special (Part 1)**

 **Until then, God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good.**


	25. 24: Valentine's Special (Part 1)

**Disclaimer: Ninjago is not mine; however, I do own the characters and the story idea.**

 **Hey people! Just wanna say that my tumblr page is up and I posted some concept art. I'll be posting more, but I'm gonna get in depth about that at the bottom. Also, since Valentine season is upon us, I'm giving you guys three different Valentine stories that connect into one at the end of this three parter and celebrate the love and friendship we feel at this time…..but every relationship has its surprises. ;)**

 **Now, let's a go!**

* * *

 **Chapter 24: Valentine's Special (Part 1)**

 **In the Dying Kingdom….**

"My King, I beg you to have mercy on me!" Gashadokuro said with a tremble in his voice. He was kneeling before Onryō's prison, while the others watched from the entrance's shadows. What Gashadokuro said while he was fighting those pesky humans had pushed the King's buttons, and he had immediately teleported the skeleton with what little power he had for punishment.

"Mercy?" Onryō asked. "I'm the King of Death and Disintegration, the Demon King. I've dedicated my existence to crushing that Spirit Queen with my own hands, and everything and everyone she cares for. I don't have time for mercy."

The others had quickly looked away and tried to block out the sounds of what they knew was coming. They tried so hard not to hear the snap of their King's claws, or the screams of Gashadokuro that rose in volume. They tried not to hear his pleas that were swallowed up as he was; and, of course, they definitely tried not hear him fade away into darkness. The only clear thing they heard was the echo of their King's collapse as he passed out into a deep slumber.

"He's gone," Harionago said as she clung onto Jorōgumo's arm. "T-t-the King just…. King Onryō just…"

Jorōgumo stroked her thorn hair in comfort. "We've all experienced that punishment, and we all know that he'll bring Gashadokuro back. But this is a strong reminder. We can't bring… _her_ back up."

"You think that it's so easy…"Kitsune scoffed, "but it's not. Especially since the one who got rid of her is the closest to the King." He rolled his eyes at Goryō and got a glare in response, making the fox quickly look away.

"There was no other choice… We all did what we had to do back during Dominance. The name itself taught us something: Only one be the victor over all, and that's what our Queen planned to do." Goryō stopped as he peeked back in the Throne Room at the sleeping demon.

"We're going to attack those humans," he said without turning his head. "But not today or tomorrow, the timing isn't right. We'll attack in a week."

"A week?!" Kitsune whisper-yelled. "I know we have to plan, but why a week? What's happening in one week that gives us a chance to attack those humans?!"

* * *

 **One week later….**

"Happy Valentine's Day, guys!" Maria said as she brought breakfast to five terrified ninja. She set a plate in front of each of them, allowing them to glance at the deadly food. Red heart-shaped pancakes that looked raw in the middle as they had a lighter color, piled on with scoops of cream cheese and, to top it off, they were soaked to the center with red syrup. They all just gulped as she stared at them, waiting eagerly for them to take a bite.

"You wouldn't mind explaining what you made for us, right, Maria?" Jay asked with a squeak in his voice as he swore he saw his food move.

"They're pancakes, of course. But since it's Valentine's Day, I made them like a red velvet cake to celebrate. So dig in!"

They all cut a piece and slowly put it in their mouths, the disgusting stench becoming more present.

 **Knock, knock, knock!**

"I think that's the mailman. I'll get it!" The Pink Ninja ran to the door, having the others run to the kitchen, open the window and toss out the food. They quickly ran back and acted like they had eaten and were satisfied, just in time as Maria walked in with a package. "Wow, you guys really wolfed it down this time!"

"Well, you outdid yourself this time. We couldn't stop after the first bite," Cole said.

"Really?" she asked. "I guess if you like it that much, I could make a special Valentine's Day dinner tonight."

"NO!" they screamed in unison. Maria had jumped back at the sudden outburst, that they quickly tried to explain it.

"What we meant to say is that we all have plans tonight," Zane said calmly. "It would be a waste of food, especially since it will be only you and Lloyd. Sensei and Misako won't be coming back until later when they're done with their research."

"I guess that makes sense…" she muttered.

"It was gonna be a waste of food anyway," Jay whispered to Nya.

"Did you say something, Jay?"

The Blue Ninja shot up. "I said…I have a big date with Nya tonight, and it would be a waste of a reservation." He quickly slung an arm around his girlfriend and gave a nervous chuckle.

"And I planned a trip with P.I.X.A.L at Borg Industries to try out the new virtual reality he's been working on."

"And I got a date with Skyler," Kai said with a smirk.

"You mean you're going over to her place to beg her to at least talk to you, right?" Cole asked teasingly.

"No! I've got a real date, unlike a certain someone I know who's practically breaking into the Cake Factory."

"I'm not banned from there anymore! I can go in like any other civilized person!"

"Except you're not," Kai mumbled under his breath.

"Well, I hope you all have a good time," Maria said as she picked up their dishes. "By the way, when I mentioned Valentine's Day to Lloyd last night, he seemed kinda depressed and upset. Do any of you guys know…why?" But the Ninja had left when her back was turned, leaving her alone.

"Well..have a good time, guys," she said quietly to herself. "I really hope you didn't hit anyone when you threw the food out the window."

* * *

It was evening when Jay and Nya had left for their date. The two had dressed in the same attire they wore on their first date to try and make up for that time at the Mega Monster Amusement Park. They landed in the front of one of the most expensive and exclusive restaurants in Ninjago; Chez Ninja.

They linked arms and walked in together, and were quickly led to the balcony by the waiter, upon noticing their faces. He pulled back a thick velvet curtain to reveal a white-clothed table for two, illuminated by a candle in the center and the lights of the city.

"Wow, Jay, I'll admit I'm impressed!" Nya said as they walked to their seats. She sat as he pulled her chair out and pushed her back.

"I'm glad. This is just what I wanted our first date to be like before I changed it to the amusement park," he said as he took his seat. "Although it might not have been as fancy as this and I'd be so nervous that I'd be rambling on and on to hide the fact I was nervous and-" He was stopped as Nya interrupted him by giving him a quick kiss on the cheek.

He immediately began blushing as she held his hand. "Happy Valentine's Day, Jay. She leaned and closed her eyes, he began to do the same. They locked their hands together and both moved them up to their shoulders. Jay could feel her warm breath closing in on his lips and-

"Wait a minute." Nya quickly sat up and grabbed Jay's left arm, having him loose balance and slam his face on the table. "You're wearing your gem?" she asked as she held it to his face.

"Of course I am," he said as he rubbed his forehead. "Why? Does it clash with my outfit?"

"It's not that, it's the fact you can't control it."

"Aww, relax, Nya, "Jay waved off. "It's not like I'll burst into a giant armor thing and break the building, or get so happy I'll accidentally look through someone else's eyes and start panicking."

"No, but you might see what's gonna happen next, and you might get freaked out."

The conversation was put on hold as the waiter returned with two silver platters with lids. He set them down, removed the lids to reveal their lobster dinner. "Dinner is served, Master Jay."

"Why, thank you," he replied. After that a sharp pain went through his head, he didn't understand at first, but then he realized he was experiencing another vision. He could see the waiter reaching into the folds of his tuxedo and pull out knife. He was going to attack them!

"Master Jay," the waiter said, making the Blue Ninja snap out of his trance. "Before I leave, I have just one thing I request of you." It was happening, the waiter was beginning to reach for his weapon.

"Not gonna happen!" Jay screamed as he tackled him down. The waiter squirmed to break free, but it was no match for Jay's tight grip. He finally got him to stop squirming, and quickly reached into his tux himself to disarm the waiter of his deadly….pen. He didn't have a knife….he had only a pen.

"You…weren't going to attack us?" Jay slowly asked.

"No!" the waiter cried out as he pushed Jay off of him. "I just wanted an autograph from my favorite Ninja, but you're not my favorite anymore!" He ran off crying, leaving Jay to face Nya who, was completely disappointed in him.

Jay sat himself back down and tried to ignore what he had just done. "Heh, heh. I guess I'll have to leave him a pretty big tip, huh?"

"I can't believe you! You made him upset!" she scolded him.

"I'm sorry! I-I-I just… I was trying to.."

"Just eat your dinner."

He quickly cut himself a bite and popped it in his mouth. "Mmmmm! This is really good, Nya. You gotta try it!"

Nya began cutting herself a bite when another pain went through Jay's head. This time he saw Nya chocking on her food, she was mouthing the word 'poison' to him and fell. He quickly shook his head to see Nya, ready to bite down on the lobster.

"Don't eat it!" he yelled, while taking her fork and platter, throwing them both over the side of the building. He let out a sigh of relief, only to face a furious Nya when he opened his eyes. "I know you're gonna yell at me, but I had a vision where you died because your lobster was poisoned."

"Just like how the waiter was evil and was gonna attack us?"

"Um, yes?" he said, afraid of her reaction.

"Jay Walker, you take off that gem right now! It's messing with your head and now your seeing things."

He raised his hands in defense. "Okay, okay. I guess you were right, I can't control it." He slipped it off, reducing it to its simple gem form, and threw it on the other side of the room. "I can't believe I let it get the best off me."

"And I can't believe how easy this was!" a familiar voice purred. Jay and Nya both quickly looked around, only to find Kitsune holding the tossed gem in his paw, a wide grin plastered on his face. "Hello there, humans!"

"You!" they both said.

"You were messing with Jay?" Nya asked.

"Of course, making him see things that weren't there was all part of the plan. It was also my entertainment for the night. So long!" He poofed away, having Jay run to his exact spot where he stood.

"No! Get back here you, you…you nine-tailed cat with eyeliner!"

"Say that to my face," Kitsune whispered as he teleported right in front of Jay. But the Blue Ninja wasn't the least bit afraid of repeating his insult.

"I called you a NINE-TAILED CAT WITH **EYELINER!** "

"I'll admit that was a good insult," Kitsune said as he scratched his chin. "But I believe there's an old saying how words can't hurt, but stick and stones can. I don't have any sticks…as for the stone part…." Without warning, Kitsune shape shifted his hand into a mallet and swung it into Jay's gut, knocking him off guard and off the building.

He flew down, but rather than falling straight on the pavement like Kitsune intended, he bumped into a few signs and bounced off a moving bus on his way down. He fell onto the pavement, but was still…alive. "Well, it can't get any worse than this," he told himself as he lifted his head off the ground.

That's when he was trampled by strange creature and had two more people stand on him. He tried screaming for them to get off, which luckily was answered as they pulled him off the ground and brushed him off. His vision was blurry until he recognized the people in front of him. "Lloyd?! Maria?!"

"We're so sorry, Jay!" Maria apologized. "Our day has been a little weird, and we're running all around the place trying to catch Dareth-"

"Hold on," he said as he held a hand up, " _that_ was _Dareth?_ The strange creature that stomped on me and almost made me one with the pavement?"

"Yeah, it's a long story," Lloyd said as he rubbed the back of his neck. "We'll tell you later, but did you see which way he went?"

"He went that way," Jay said as he pointed right. The two Ninja quickly ran off when he stopped them. "Hold on, I could help you."

"You really shouldn't," Lloyd insisted. "I told you that it's a long story and even if we told you, you wouldn't help us."

"Oh, please! What could be so bad that would keep me from helping you guys?" he said as he crossed his arms.

After a brief nod at each other, Lloyd turned to Jay and said, "Dareth's gone crazy, he's been running around New Ninjago City wearing nothing but a loincloth."

"…..You guys got this! You don't need my help, so have fun with that!"

Lloyd rolled his eyes and the two of them continued their chase. Jay was ready to summon his dragon when Nya came flying down with her own, landing right next to him. He immediately pulled her in for a hug and asked, "Kitsune didn't hurt you, did he?"

"I'm okay," she said as she broke from the embrace. "And I'm sorry about yelling at you, but we will get your gem back."

"I beg to differ," a voice from above called. They looked up to see Kitsune fall from the building and land right in front of them, shape shifting both of his arms into swords. "Let's see you two try to defeat me."

They charged at him as he did the same, swinging his swords furiously. They jumped over him and hit him with a water and lighting combo on his back. The attack made him furious enough to change his arms into two whips; and, in one swift motion, he flung them at their legs and caught them in a tight grip. He swung them around until they got dizzy, and flung them into a truck.

By now, civilians had begun to watch from the sidelines in safety, as he prepared to grab them again, but Jay was quick to electrocute him as he attacked. Kitsune was stunned and paralyzed, allowing Nya to dose him in water and have Jay shock him again, but with the effect increased from Nya's attack.

Kitsune furiously shook it off and transformed his arms into one huge war hammer. "I'm done playing with you knockoffs! NOW YOU'LL PAY!" He charged at the couple and was prepared to smash the weapon less Ninja to pieces.

But the attack never came.

In the blink of an eye, a tall, black cloaked figure appeared between them, halting the fight and having Kitsune stop his shape shifting. "Goryō," Kitsune said as his ears flattened against his skull, "I wasn't going to kill them. I was trying to teach them not to mess with me and-"

"Get back to the castle," Goryō said.

"I'm not going to that dump, not when these two-"

"Get BACK to the CASTLE."

Instantly, Kitsune poofed away, leaving Jay and Nya with Goryō. He didn't move the slightest as he spoke to them. "Treasure every moment you have with each other, I want to see you both crying your hardest when you watch the other suffer and fade away." And just like that, he disappeared as well.

The bystanders had erupted in cheers at the victory, but Jay didn't pay attention as he realized something. "My gem! Kitsune has my-!"

"No, he doesn't," Nya said as she held his gem over his wrist, letting it regain its bracelet form. She held onto his hand as she spoke. "It'll be a challenge to control it, but I'm with you all the way."

"I'm glad," he said with a smile. "You know, I may be able see to what's gonna happen next the moment before it does, but I right now, I can see something in my future that's about a few years away."

"Oh, yeah?" Nya said as she wrapped her arms around his neck. "What do you see that's so good?"

"You." Just like that he pulled her in for a deep kiss, one of many that was soon to come.

* * *

 **Ahhhh, amour! Its so sweet. Now, in my possession I have five FINALIZED art pictures of our main villains: Harionago, Jorōgumo, Kitsune, Gashadokuro, and Onryō. After the last chapter of the Valentine's Day special, I'll put up a poll on my profile so you can vote for your favorite villain. The winning villain will have their art posted on my tumblr for all to see them reveal theirselves.**

 **Can't wait for the next chapter where we'll see Kai and Skyler.**

 **Next chapter on Ninjago: Legend Reborn….**

 **Valentine's Special (Part 2)**

 **Until then, God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good.**


	26. 25: Valentine's Special (Part 2)

**Disclaimer: I don't own Ninjago, just the ocs and story idea.**

 **Part 2 people of my Valentine's special, and of course, I'll post another on Valentine's Day itself. Also, since HoT is coming soon, I'm going to transition in slowly with some references, including the Ninja getting new suits, along with Maria. Her HoT suit is on my tumblr page. Check it out!**

 **Now on with the story!**

* * *

 **Chapter 25: Valentine's Special (Part 2)**

It was about afternoon when Kai had reached the noodle house. Before entering, he quickly removed his hat to fix his hair once more, along with straightening out his jacket of any wrinkles. For the final touch, he reached in his pocket and pulled out a bottle of his favorite cologne; _Burning Passions_. He gave himself a spritz, slipped it back in, and opened the doors to the restaurant while walking in with pride, just as he had rehearsed for three hours.

And there she was, wiping down the counter she stood behind. Skyler, his date…or yet-to-be date.

Kai walked over and leaned on the counter while flashing her a smile. "Hey, Skyler. Did you miss me?"

She arched an eyebrow and said with a chuckle, "Missed you? Everyday since last week, you ordered something and insisted on picking it up here. And this morning you called to wish me a 'Happy Valentine's Day.'"

"Well..yeah," he said flustered. "But it's been some time since then, so you must've missed me a little."

"Maybe a little," she said while turning her back towards him. "And maybe I know why you're here, and maybe I'll say yes."

That was his cue, better not keep her waiting. Kai cleared his throat and started to ask, "Skyler, will you be my Valentine and go on a date with me this evening?"

She turned to face him once more, her eyes locked with his. She opened her mouth and answered, "Sorry, I'm busy."

"Well..I walked into that," Kai said with a huff.

"But I have a lunch break in about 10 minutes."

He immediately perked up with a blush on his face, which gave Skyler a little chuckle. She winked and said, "I'll be yours then. Just wait outside and I'll meet up with you." She walked away leaving behind a speechless Kai.

He walked out of the noodle house, and when he was sure no one was watching, he pumped a fist and let out a loud, "YES!" There was one thing he was sure of now.

This would be the best day ever.

* * *

This would be the best day ever if Skyler wasn't 10 minutes late.

Maybe she was messing with him? No, it couldn't be, although doing evil acts did run in her family considering Chen was her father. Still, he waited…and waited..waited..

 **RING, RING!**

His phone went off, causing him to snap out of his trance. Kai pulled it out and gave a slight frown when he didn't recognize the number. Annoyed, he answered it. "Hello?"

" _Kai, it's Maria. Can you hear me?"_

"Yes, I can hear you," he said with a roll of his eyes. "What do you want?"

" _First off, I wanna apologize for interrupting the date you may or may not be having. I'm not sure where you are with this Skyler girl, but the guys told me some things, so I'm sorry if I'm being a bother and-"_

"Get to the point, already!"

" _O-okay…well, I need your help. The scanners went off, but I don't know how to see what's causing them to go all crazy. I didn't want to bother Lloyd since he doesn't feel good, but it's a lot harder to do this on my own. I need you to walk me through the steps so I can-"_

"It's a monster!"

"Call the Ninja!"

"Call the fire department!"

The screams from inside made Kai quickly use his spinjitzu to change into his gi. "Sorry, Maria! I gotta go! Bye!"

" _Kai, wait! I need-!"_

But Kai had already turned off his phone and barged in the restaurant. Some people had ran past him to get to safety, others hid behind tables and booths from the deadly hair of Harionago. She was on a table and was flinging her hair at the walls and ceiling, chipping away pieces of the building. The screams of the civilians made her give out a cackle.

"Hey, ugly!" Kai shouted, gaining her attention. "Why don't you pick on someone your own size?"

"Maybe I will," she coyly said. "Why don't you come over here and try to take me down?"

"Gladly!" He lit up his fist with flames, jumped and aimed a punch at her, just as she held up a weak Skyler as a shield.

Kai quickly realized what she was doing, and at the last second he stopped his attack. He ran back, giving them some distance, and shouted, "Let her go!"

"Oh, don't worry your ugly little head. I'm only going to take her to my base and _show her_ my beloved beasts."

"I mean it!" he screamed with his fists clenched. "You better let her go or I'll-"

"Destroy me over some girl, right?" Harionago chuckled, but quickly changed her expression to a surprised one as she spoke in a mocking tone. "Oh, but she's not just some girl, is she? Oh my, she's your lover!"

"N-no! I never…I didn't-" Kai started to protest.

"You can't fool me, you practically told me you love her with that stutter of yours. Well, it's the day of love, so I could spare her for you. That is, if she is your lover. Convince me, and I might let her go."

Kai's face turned as red as his gi, which was luckily hidden behind his hood. He couldn't express his feelings, he wasn't really good at doing that sort of thing. Not since his parents…

"This is getting bor-ing!" Harionago jumped off the table with Skyler in tow, and started to walk away.

"Wait! I do like her!" Kai shouted.

Harionago stopped, she locked one of her icy blue eyes with him as she glanced over her shoulder. "You just _like_ her? Not love?"

"I-I…" he struggled to speak, but glanced over at Skyler, all helpless and weak. He took a deep breath, his eyes full of seriousness as he confessed. "I love her, Harionago. She's the reason I'm alive; she helped me get my brother back, she's brave and strong, and I will do anything for her."

Had it not been for the people who were observing the whole scene and gave out a few "awws," it was almost silent. The thorn-haired demon look back at the doors and spoke. "Okay, so you love her. If only I didn't swear to myself to cause pain to Seraphina's followers through their loved ones."

She began to raise her fingers to her lips, but Kai was quick to yell out, "Ninjagooo!" He caught her in his spinjitzu and knocked her out the doors. He tried pinning her to the ground, but she kicked him in the gut and whipped him to the side, while remaining to a tight grip on Skyler. While he was caught off guard, she grabbed him with her hair and began to squeeze.

"Don't worry," she said sweetly, "I'll take care of her. In fact, I could take her to meet the King. He's always delighted to eat-oh, I mean _meet_ humans."

The anger inside of Kai just started to overwhelm him. He could feel every ounce of him begin to burn, hotter and hotter as he tried to break free of the tight grasp once more. "You're…not…taking her anywhere!" In a flash of red light, his armor appeared, having that section of her rip off and become a shoulder length.

"MY HAIR!" she shrieked at the top of her lungs. She set Skyler down, and, with her remaining hair, she jumped onto Kai's armor. "YOU…" she growled, "YOU WILL **PAY!"**

She formed her hair into a drill and aimed where Kai's gem was, but he was quick to swat her off with his sword. It enraged her more; she grabbed ahold of his leg and pulled it enough for him to fall. Harionago lunged it once more and made contact, sparks flying as it was drilling away at its tough exterior.

"Say goodbye, Levi!" she held her hair above her head and charged it down, but he grabbed it and slammed her into the road. Harionago practically peeled her head off the pavement, just in time to see Kai ready to stomp on her.

"How about you say goodbye, Harionago?" He thrusted his foot down, but the blow didn't reach her.

He couldn't move it, so he looked and saw a cloaked figure holding it with just one hand. As though it was so simple, the figure tossed him aside as he was, making Kai loose focus and his armor shatter. He quickly got back on his feet to see the figure holding Harionago bridal style in his muscular arms. "Harionago.." the figure said, "you really need to control that temper of yours."

"Hey, you!" Kai shouted. "Show your face, you coward!"

The figure turned to leave. "Fool, cowards act like they're strong by living off those who are weaker than them. That is what you just did to my comrade here. Just wait until you and I fight, then I'll show you I'm no coward."

In a puff of smoke, he vanished.

"Kai!" Said Ninja turned to Skyler, who, was running towards him. "Are you okay? I couldn't stop her, she just surprised me and was too powerful."

"That doesn't matter," he said. "Are you okay?"

"Very. Especially since I heard what you said about me." Kai began to blush, but his hood was taken off by Skyler herself as she gave him a kiss on his cheek. "I'll admit that was the sweetest thing anyone's ever said about me."

He quickly cleared his throat and tried to speak. "So..since that's over with, you wanna go on that date with me?"

"I'd love to, but the restaurant is destroyed and full of possibly traumatized customers. I think I need to skip my break and clean up the mess."

"Oh, right," he sadly said. That's when she linked his arm with hers and smiled.

"But it won't be so bad if you're there with me."

"O-okay!" he quickly said. "Let's head back!"

As they walked back together, Kai looked up and silently whispered, "Thank you!"

Today really was the best day ever.

* * *

 **This chapter's a little short…hm. Hope you guys enjoyed it though! This Valentine's Day is when I put a new chapter and the poll to vote for your favorite villain from my series. Remember that the winner will have their finalized art posted on my tumblr! Next chapter, we finally see Lloyd and Maria's crazy adventure!**

 **Feel free to ask me questions, review and share this story with a friend!**

 **Next chapter on Ninjago: Legend Reborn….**

 **Valentine's Special (Part 3)**

 **Until then, God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good.**


	27. 26: Valentine's Special (Part 3)

**Disclaimer: Ninjago is not mine, just the ocs and story idea.**

 **Happy late Valentine's Day! Here we are, the final chapter of my three part story where we see Lloyd and Maria's side of this trilogy. Remember that after this, go to my profile and vote for your favorite villain that's in my story. The winning villain will have their finalized art on my tumblr. Also, check out my tumblr to see art for upcoming MAJOR chapters!**

 **Sorry this is late, my computer deleted this so I had to redo this whole chapter. Oh, technology, why must you bring me entertainment, yet give me suffering in my prime time as a FFN writer?**

 **Let's dive on in!**

* * *

 **Chapter 26: Valentine's Special (Part 3)**

All the others had left to get ready for their plans, that left Lloyd and Maria alone on the _Bounty_ , but they weren't together. Maria just sighed as she cleaned the table that the others left a mess in a rush to leave. When she was done, she head down to Sensei's room to place his package on his bed, but as she started to open the door, she heard mumbling.

"….I miss you…. I can't do this…"

Maria recognized it as Lloyd's; although she knew it was wrong, she tiptoed to his door and peeked in. She could see him sitting on his bed, his back face towards her, as he was looking down at something. If she could just lean a little more…but she had leaned in too much and was caught off guard by the door flinging open; as a result, she fell to the ground.

"What are you doing?" Lloyd's voice was heard from above her. She opened her eyes to see him looking down and frowning.

Maria shot up and tried to reply. "I was…uhh..taking a package to S-Sensei's room."

"You've been down to his room before and know where it is by now, why were you eavesdropping?"

"I wasn't! I was…umm…w-well I wanted to ask you something, but you sounded like you were on the phone. I didn't want to be a bother."

"What did you want?"

Maria blinked and tensed up. "Wh-wha-?"

"I what to know what you wanted to ask me," he said as he folded his arms across his chest. He had an impatient look on his face as she stayed silent and stared at her feet. "Well, go on."

"I wanted to ask if…if you could…teach me…spinjitzu?" she replied unsurely.

"No."

"But I wanna start practicing more with a professional," Maria protested. "I'm getting somewhat better at the obstacle course, even Sensei says I could do it soon. I think maybe if we tried it together-"

"I said no, Maria," Lloyd said firmly. "It's our day off, so just relax. I've got plans myself and I need to be alone."

"B-but, Lloyd-"

"Goodbye, Maria," he said before closing the door in her face.

'He's been acting weird and he doesn't look good,' Maria thought. 'I guess if he won't help me, I'll call up the next best thing.' She pulled out her phone and speed dialed her best choice available. "Hello, Dareth? I need a favor."

* * *

When Sensei said Maria would be able to do spinjitzu soon, he probably meant in a matter of months at the rate she was going. She could only pant, sweat dripping down her face, as she finished going through the obstacle course for the 10th time that day. She stood up with a slight wobble as she checked her time on the stopwatch. 1 minute and 50 seconds, better than her last time, but still bad compared to the others.

"You can do this, Maria," she encouraged herself. "You can be as good as the others. You can be a good Ninja, and a good-" Maria stopped as a sharp pain went through her gut, causing her to lean over and grab it tightly.

She could only remember feeling this sort of pain back when…back when the balance was tipped on the Day of the Departed.

 **BEEP,BEEP,BEEP! BEEP,BEEP,BEEP!**

The blaring sound of the scanners made her perk up and run to the bridge. Maria bursted through the door and went over to the scanners as multiple red lights flashed on map of the city…problem was she didn't know how to work them. She didn't think that she would be on her own in a situation like this, nor did she prepare. It probably wasn't the best idea to ask Lloyd now, so it was up to her to take care of this, alone.

Confidence growing in her, Maria put a serious look on her face and pushed the button to turn off the scanners.

" _Self destruct sequence now initiated,"_ a monotone voice from the computer spoke.

"What?! No, no, no, no, NO!" Maria quickly began pushing other buttons in an effort to stop the countdown. It was hopeless…until she saw a button that said,

 **In case all else fails, push this button.**

"Well, here goes nothing!" She slammed her hand down on it.

" _Self destruct sequence aborted."_

Maria put and hand over her heart and nearly fainted in relief. Ok, so this wasn't as easy as the others made it looked when they used it, so maybe a little help wouldn't hurt. Zane would be busy, Cole would probably be stuffing his face in cake, and Sensei or Misako didn't have a phone, that left Jay as her next best option. She dialed his number and waited for him to pick up.

" _Hello?" his voice answered._

"Jay, it's Maria."

" _Yeah, what's up?"_

"Well, I have a question about-"

" _HA HA!"_ Jay's sudden cackle cut her off. _"You fell for my voicemail! Who ever you are, just leave a message at the beep and I'll call back when I can."_

Maria ended the call before it came to the beep. If Jay was busy, then Nya was probably busy as well; so the only person available would be Kai. Once again, she dialed in Kai's number this time and waited a few seconds before she was answered.

 _"Hello?"_

"Kai, it's Maria. Can you hear me?"

 _"Yes, I can hear you,"_ he said with his voice ringing with annoyance. _"What do you want?"_

"First off, I wanna apologize for interrupting the date you may or may not be having. I'm not sure where you are with this Skyler girl, but the guys told me some things, so I'm sorry if I'm being a bother and-"

 _"Get to the point, already!"_

"O-okay…well, I need your help. The scanners went off, but I don't know how to see what's causing them to go all crazy. I didn't want to bother Lloyd since he doesn't feel good, but it's a lot harder to do this on my own. I need you to walk me through the steps so I can-"

A sudden silence was heard on the phone before transitioning into muffled screams, she could hear the shimmering sound of spinjitzu being used before he answered her again. _"Sorry, Maria! I gotta go! Bye!"_

"Kai, wait! I need-!" But he had already hung up, leaving Maria feeling defeated. She slammed her head down on the controls and let out a groan. "Why is nothing going my way today?"

"Maybe because you don't believe in yourself," a voice said. She turned her head while keeping it on the controls to see Lloyd, his face serious as he stopped the scanners from blaring out anymore. He just stared at her; when she didn't move her head, he said, "I'm gonna need those buttons you're laying on."

"Sorry," she apologized as she stood upright, allowing him to continue on. "Are you feeling better? Not that I thought you were feeling awful before, but you seemed a little under the weather."

Lloyd just ignored her question and pulled up live feeds of people acting so..wicked. They were at each other's throats like animals, scaring younger kids, driving like maniacs, jaywalking. His eyes were glued to the screen as he asked, "Do you know a creature that can cause people to go crazy?"

"Uh, yes!" she answered quickly and went over to a drawer where a few scrolls were kept. "I've seen something like this when I was reading- oh!" Maria accidentally pulled out the entire drawer and spilled the scrolls on the ground, having her frantically pick them up. After cleaning up the best she could, she slapped down a scroll with an image of a small, squared shaped oni-like creature.

"That is an amanojaku," Maria explained with scrolls almost falling from her arms. "It's a little demon that has unknown origins, but is powerful enough to take control of someone's heart and control their wicked desires."

"I guess with this many people, it's a sign they can spread out like a disease," Lloyd pondered. "How do we get rid of them?"

"We have to destroy the main one; rumor is that it can multiply itself many times because its power can be too much for its body. It keeps a life link with its copies, so that's what we need to do: destroy the parent, it gets rid of the rest."

"Good, I'll go out and stop this. Stay here and be safe. That's an order." He just started walking away…he just left her.

Something inside Maria just snapped, just by the slightest. It was enough to make her drop the scrolls on the ground, run up to the door just as Lloyd was opening it and slam it shut.

"If I can't go with you, then we're **both** staying."

"Maria, get out of the way."

"No, you've been acting rude all day and I'm tired of it! I just wanna help!" As she had finished protesting, another sharp pain went through her gut, causing her to fall to her knees as sh held it tightly.

"What? What is it?" Lloyd asked as he tried to help her.

"I-it's just like the Day of the Departed," she squeaked out. "It hurts so much, but I don't know what's causing it this time." Maria took in a few more heavy breaths before the pain evaporated mysteriously. "It's…gone."

"That's a good thing, it won't hurt you anymore," he said as he helped her up.

"It's not that, it's _why_ it's happening that has me worried. Sensei said that the first time was because the balance of life was being tipped, but these demons aren't strong enough to do that!"

 **BOOM!**

The two whipped around to sound of crash on deck. "Maria, stay behind me," Lloyd whispered. "I think one of those possessed people are on board."

Maria arched an eyebrow. "While we're in the air?"

"We're not that far up, so it's possible." He kept silent after that and quietly walked onboard, slowly and ready to attack. When they reached the deck, their attention was caught by a few ripped pieces of wood ripped off; some of which were forced into the mast.

Sensing no threat, Lloyd pulled out the pieces of wood and began examining them. "That's weird. I could've sworn that we were under-"

" **GAYLE!"**

It all happened so suddenly; Dareth had jumped from behind the mast so unexpectedly and had tackled Lloyd down. The Green Ninja himself was surprised to see Dareth, of all people, act so crazy and like an animal. He even looked like one as his hair was all messed up and his clothes were ripped down until they resembled a long loincloth. It was enough to keep him stunned in that moment.

"Get off him!" Maria screamed as she threw Dareth off to the side. She stood in a fighting position and was panting hard. "Dareth, I don't wanna fight you, so snap out of this!"

"Gayle…."was all he growled before jumping over the side.

"What was that all about?" Lloyd asked as he hopped back on his feet. The Pink Ninja was silent and just stared at the ground. "Maria, what's going on?"

"….Dareth was acting crazier than the other people. That's a sign he's got the parent….and he was gonna have you act like those people." She buried her face in her hands and held back a sob.

Lloyd walked over and put a hand on her shoulder. "I'm fine, and Dareth will be, too. You have to be strong, for him."

She lifted her head, her face forcing away any sadness she felt. "You're right, I've been giving up too much today. Now let's save Dareth!"

* * *

It had gotten dark in their search for Dareth or any of the possessed people. Not a single trace was found. They'd all vanished into thin air.

"Where did he go?" Maria asked as they stopped in an alleyway. "I'm worried about him."

"I'm sure he's around here somewhere,"Lloyd assured her. "Maybe while we're at this we can try and piece together how he got possessed by the parent amanojaku."

"But no one knows how they come to be. How can we find that out, let alone figure out why the parent took control of Dareth?"

"Well, did he say anything to you that was out of character for him?" Lloyd asked.

Maria closed her eyes and though hard. "I only talked to him this morning to ask if he could help me learn spinjitzu-"

"Hold on. You asked **Dareth** to help you get better at spinjitzu?"

"Well, yeah," she replied with confusion on her face. "Why wouldn't I? He's so strong and he's a talented Grand Sensei, considering his fighting style with animals is so unique and powerful."

Lloyd just rubbed his eyes and tried not to cringe. "Just tell me what else you said to him."

"He said he'd helped after he visited Gayle to wish her a Happy Valentine's Day. It's sad though…she always turns him down, but he's an amazing person."

Suddenly it all clicked in Lloyd's mind. "That's it! What if she rejected him again and the demon is feeding off his pain?"

She thought about it for a while before exclaiming herself. "You're right, Lloyd! The amanojaku is controlling him because he's heartbroken, literally heartbroken considering he must be feeling a strong amount of sadness, just like Basil told us!"

"Then we have to find him fast before this gets worse."

" **GAYLE!"**

The two Ninja turned to see him running down a street, arms flying in the air as he growled. They immediately chased after him as he ran past people that coward at his appearance, and ran over a something black. They stopped as he had gone out of sight, having them search frantically for him.

Maria had a puzzled look on her face that made Lloyd ask, "Are you ok?"

"Is it just me, or does the ground feel squishy to you, too?"

They looked down to see they were standing on a guy. They were even more mortified as they recognized his orange red hair.

"It's Jay!" they both exclaimed as they got off him and helped him up.

"Lloyd?! Maria?!"

"We're so sorry, Jay!" Maria apologized. "Our day has been a little weird, and we're running all around the place trying to catch Dareth-"

"Hold on," he said as he held a hand up, "that was Dareth? The strange creature that stomped on me and almost made me one with the pavement?"

"Yeah, it's a long story," Lloyd said as he rubbed the back of his neck. "We'll tell you later, but did you see which way he went?"

"He went that way," Jay said as he pointed right. They were ready to continue their chase when he stopped them. "Hold on, I could help you."

"You really shouldn't," Lloyd insisted. "I told you that it's a long story and even if we told you, you wouldn't help us."

"Oh, please! What could be so bad that would keep me from helping you guys?" Jay said as he crossed his arms.

After a brief nod at each other, Lloyd turned to Jay and said, "Dareth's gone crazy, he's been running around New Ninjago City wearing nothing but a loincloth."

"…..You guys got this! You don't need my help, so have fun with that!"

Lloyd just rolled his eyes and ignored what happened. They sprinted harder than before as Dareth was back in sight, until Maria fell to the ground with her stomach in a tight grip.

"I can't move…" weakly she said.

It didn't stop Lloyd, however, he just picked her up and carried her piggyback style and kept running. "We almost got him," he assured her. "Dareth ran into an alley, we can finally get him."

That's when he skid into the alley to see an unconscious Dareth being held up by the hair, helpless in the grasp of a cloaked figure.

"Let him go!" Lloyd demanded.

"As you wish," the figure said. He dropped Dareth, but left in his hand was a squirming amanojaku. "How is the child feeling now?"

Afraid he would strike as he looked back, Lloyd gave Maria a slight tap on the head while keeping his eyes locked on he figure. She woke up, feeling stronger, but sank back when she saw the cloaked figure herself. "Wh-who…?" was all she could say as fear sank into her mind.

With his free hand, the figure pulled back his hood to reveal his face. It was like a grey bull, with to black horns that curved in and pointed at his golden nose ring. His eyes were a wicked green that pierced through them as he spoke. "I am Goryō; the top captain of King Onryō's guard and one of the demons who've been waiting for your return the most, Seraphina."

"Her name's Maria," Lloyd said to him. "All of you need to get that through your heads. Now tell me, why are you here?"

"I don't see why you're so angry with me," Goryō smoothly replied, "I just helped both of you. I'm taking the amanojaku-which will have its duplicates follow it after freeing the humans- and I'm cleaning up the spirit pollution they caused. You also get this fat human back, and I'm sparing both of you after helping me get some new recruits."

"Hey!" Maria started to say. "I want you to say you're sorry to Dareth! He's a great person and you're just a big jerk! You have no right to insult him!"

"And you have no right to call yourself a queen!" Goryō shot back. "You've done enough to all of us. Just wait until the first strike, Seraphina."

"What're you-?" she started to ask.

"The first strike, Seraphina." He just stood still and disappeared in a puff of smoke. Maria hopped of Lloyd's back and kneeled next to Dareth, who, was gaining consciousness.

"What happened?" he asked. He looked down and let out a shriek. "WHAT AM I WEARING?!"

"Dareth, you're okay," Maria assured him. "You'll be alright now. It's all gonna be alright."

* * *

Maria had finished cleaning up all the scroll she had dropped earlier as soon as Lloyd and her dropped Dareth off at his place. To unwind after a long day, Lloyd came back in the bridge with two mugs of hot chocolate.

"Get it while it's hot," he said as he handed her a mug. He got to work chugging down his sweet drink, stopping as he noticed the Pink Ninja staring down. "You can relax now, everything's taken care of."

"L-Lloyd," she said quietly, "the amanojaku could only get you if you were hurting like Dareth. I lied earlier, I overheard you and you sounded so sad."

Lloyd let out a sigh. "Look, I'm sorry I was rude earlier, it's just…everyone's spending time with people they care for today, not me though. With everyone acting so happy, I just think of my dad; I know he's in a better place, but the pain never goes away. It hurts and makes me think of what would happen if I didn't succeed, if I didn't win, if I didn't-"

Maria placed a calm hand on his tense one. "I understand the pain you're going through, but I don't. My papa and I never got to meet, he did so much to be with my mom and to have me. So you're kinda lucky; you got to spend some time with your dad, you have a mom and an uncle, and the other Ninja watch over you like siblings."

He let out a little gasp. She really didn't have anything now; her mom was far away, her friend left her, and she didn't have a dad. Maria was alone like he was once, but he could do something about it.

Lloyd grabbed her in a playful noogie like Kai had once did to him and said with a chuckle, "You're pretty lucky yourself, 'cause I'm gonna watch over you from now on!"

"Hey, don't mess up my hair!" she playfully yelped as she pulled herself out. The moment was stopped as the rest of the crew walked in, all chattering at once. "You're back!" Maria happily exclaimed.

Sensei stepped forth from the group and got everyone's attention. "Ninja, Misako and I have found the village's location, and we will head there soon." He stopped as they cheered at the good news. "I also have a surprise for the seven of you, it came in the mail today."

Maria quickly ran down to Sensei Wu's room,snatched the package off his bed, and came bursting back in the bridge. "Here's…your package…Sensei," she said in between breaths, as he took it.

Wu opened it up and gave each of them a new gi, all wrapped in plastic.

"Oh, yeah! We're gonna look awesome in these babies!" Cole said.

"The design of it reflects watch of our own styles," Zane commented. "The material also looks breathable and light."

"I get one, too!" Maria held hers up with a big smile on her face. "I can't wait to try it…" She stopped as the other had already changed from their old gi to their new ones with spinjitzu. "…on."

"Don't worry, pupil," Sensei said, noticing her frown. "Your time to learn spinjitzu is upon us, as is the time to fulfill your destiny."

She looked back at the others smiling, smiling back at them with hope growing in herself.

"I'm ready."

* * *

 **Reminder: Maria's HoT suit is on my tumblr- CrystalliaWriting- and don't forget to vote!**

 **Next chapter on Ninjago: Legend Reborn….**

 **The Sanctuary**

 **Until then, God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good.**


	28. 27: The Sanctuary

**Disclaimer: Ninjago: not mine. Story idea and ocs: ALL MINE!**

 **Quick note: VOTE, VOTE ,VOTE! The poll is up on my profile, so let's get voting!**

 **And let's get reading!**

* * *

 **Chapter 27: The Sanctuary**

"Maria…Maria….HEY, MARIA!"

The Pink Ninja snapped out of her trance and faced back at the other Ninja. They all had impatient looks on their faces, except for Jay who looked smug.

"I told you I could get her attention."

"Sorry, guys. Did you need something?" she sheepishly asked.

"We _were_ in the middle of training, then you started ignoring us," Kai said annoyed.

"I'm sorry! It's just so nice today. It's warm, there's a nice breeze, everything is so peaceful. I just can't help myself, I love it so much."

Cole grabbed her arm and pulled her back to the center of the deck. "Yeah, yeah, save your hippie urges for later, we've got to squeeze in some training before we reach the village." He stepped back in line with the others as they pulled their hoods down and got into a fighting position.

"Are you ready?" Lloyd asked.

"Bring it on!" Maria replied.

First came a wave of fire and earth shots that she dodged easily. One burning ball of flame came close to her face, but she quickly bent backwards over to avoid the attack.

"Good job, Maria! Get ready for the next round!"

Jay stepped forward and began zapping away at her, but once again she managed to dodge at every. "Come on, Jay, this is the best you got?" she playfully teased as she stepped out of the way of another attack. "I know the others aren't as fast as you, so why are you lagging behind?"

"I don't lag behind! I was going easy, but since you're so confident, I'll show you what I can do!" Jay summoned a huge ball of lighting and hurled it at her. "Take this!"

In that moment, Maria couldn't move anymore. She didn't understand, she had already planned to do a side dodge, but her mind and whole body was..frozen. Maria couldn't even think and hear her inner voice, until a deeper and familiar voice that was once her own screamed in her mind. _"FATHER!"_

"Maria, move!"

She quickly snapped out of her trance once more,but was pushed back into darkness as the ball of lighting had hit her and knocked her out cold.

The Ninja quickly ran by her side and hovered over her to try and help.

"I'm sorry! I didn't mean to kill her!" Jay quickly apologized.

"She's not dead, idiot!" Kai shouted. "She's clearly breathing, but she could've died!"

"I think someone should give her CPR just in case," Nya said. She then quickly shook Maria by grabbing her shoulders, but she didn't respond. "Look, she's not reacting to stimuli, that's a sign you need to give someone CPR!"

The guys just tensed up and exchanged disturbed looks.

Nya put her hand on her hips and gave them a look. "None of you want to do it because it'd be awkward for each of you, right?"

"Absolutely," they said in unison.

"Nya's right, we gotta do something or Maria might not-" Lloyd was interrupted at the sound of a weak moan. They all glanced back to see Maria sitting back up, her eyes fluttering open.

"Maria, do you remember what happened?" Zane asked.

"Yeah, do you remember me chucking a huge ball of lighting at you that knocked you out cold?" Jay asked.

"I…don't think so."

"Good, 'cause that never happened." After Jay quickly tried to cover up his mistake, Cole elbowed him in the side, making the Blue Ninja scream silently in pain.

"I think I remember something that caught me off guard. We were training and I heard a voice…but I don't remember what it said. It's just..gone."

"Ninja," Wu's voice said from behind them. They quickly stood in a line as Sensei and Misako approached them. "We have finally arrived, pupils. The time has come for us to get answers that Destiny kept from us."

"All I'm hearing is that I'll be the first one down there!" Cole ran to side with Kai and Jay at his heels. The three prepared to summon their dragons as they exchanged smirks. "So what's the bet gonna be this time?"

They were about to continue the conversation, however Sensei quickly gave them a hard whack on the head with his staff. "There will be no bets or racing to the village! Flying on your dragons will have the villagers think you are a threat; more importantly, I sense a strange force close by, possibly a shield of some kind."

"I'm calculating all possible options, and as I suspected, the safest choice would be to travel on foot and have the villagers invite us in," Zane explained.

"I guess that's it," Lloyd said. "Lower the anchor, we're heading out on foot!"

* * *

"'We can do this on foot,' he says. 'It'll be _so_ easy,' he says."

"Jay, Lloyd didn't say all of that," Maria called from the group as she walked by Lloyd. The others were starting to fall behind little by little as the ground was loose and muddy, sucking their footsteps in as they got deeper into the woods.

"Well, Lloyd didn't say it wouldn't be torture, because he's _such a great leader!"_

It was Lloyd himself that responded this time. "You know that Lloyd has ears, Jay….and feelings."

"Jay, you're hurting his feelings!" Maria scolded him. "Apologize to him!"

"Why should I?!"

"Will the two of you can it?!" Nya shouted. However, she had stopped walking and immediately sunk in the mud to waist level. "I'm stuck!"

Kai and Cole positioned themselves on opposite sides of her and began to pull. They pulled and pulled until they realized they were sinking themselves.

"Great plan, Kai," Cole said sarcastically.

"I didn't come up with this plan and I didn't work alone," Kai shot back.

"Please, brothers," Zane calmly said, "we must not let frustration ruin our mission and our bond with another. Don't move, I will freeze it and break it." He shot a beam of ice and froze the area around them, allowing him to pull out his shurikens and throw them into the ice, having it crack and free the three.

"I can't take much more of this," Nya complained. "Are we almost at the village, Lloyd?"

The Green Ninja was unresponsive; he just stood standing and staring off with a blank look on his face. "Um, are you okay, Lloyd?" Maria asked with deep concern.

"I..remember this place," he softly said. "This is the same place I was remembering back at the museum when I was overcome."

 **RUSTLE RUSTLE**

"What was that?" Maria asked as all seven of them pulled out their weapons.

 **RUSTLE RUSTLE RUSTLE**

"Whoever's there, show yourself, cowards!" Jay shouted.

From the thick bushes popped out two big,unrealistically blue eyes and a pair of white cat-like ears that stuck out from the bushes. Another pair of normal eyes appeared, along with yellow eyes that had black irises and a long, brown tail.

"Okay….anyone else?" Jay asked with slight fear in his tone.

In reply, a pair of red eyes popped up with two gray horns that ripped through the leaves. And, to his discomfort, three light purple eyes blinked into sight.

"I take it back, leave us alone!"

"Jay, relax," Kai said annoyed. "We outnumber these….things. We can take 'em and whatever they have to throw at us."

"Mama!" In a blur, five little kids tackled Maria and nearly knocked her off balance. They still clung to her legs and pushed each other away to receive more attention.

"I take it back. I was not expecting _this_ to happen."

"And I wasn't expecting to be fought over like a toy!" Maria was being shaken back and forth as the children kept fighting for her attention. "This is getting really uncomfortable for me. Can you get them off just for a second, please?"

"Okay, kids," Cole said in an overly cheery tone, "how about we leave the nice girl alone for a second?" When they ignored him completely, he became agitated and started to pluck them off, starting with a chubby boy with red eyes and horns.

"Put me down, or I'll get nasty!" the boy protested.

Cole tried to hold a laugh. "Okay, that's real cute. A little butterball like you is trying to act all tough and take me on. Hate to break it to you, but you don't have a chance."

"Or muscle!" Kai joked as he poked at the boy's belly. The two began laughing, failing to notice the boy was growing with anger, his turning red as his rage.

"I think it would be wise to apologize to the child," Zane said.

"Why?" they both asked. Zane simply pointed at the boy's condition, making them turn pale in realization at what they'd done. "Oh, snap."

In a blink of an eye, the boy grabbed them by their throats and flung them into the trees. The two crashed and went halfway through a tree, spitting out leaves and pieces of bark.

"Are you guys ok?" Maria asked.

"DOES IT LOOK LIKE THEY'RE OKAY, WOMAN?!" Jay asked while shaking her by the shoulders. He stopped as he saw a hand on his wrist, which was connected to the three eyed girl with sharp fangs that intimidated Jay a little….a lot. "Heh, heh, hey there…you little cutie."

"DON'T. TOUCH. MAMA!" The girl quickly pulled him back and pinned his arms behind his back.

"Owwww! I tap out, just let me live!" Jay pleaded. "Do something, Lloyd! This one did something to me, I can't use my powers!"

Even the leader was confused and frightened by what was going on, but quickly tried talking to the most normal looking child of the group. "Hey there, buddy," he nervously said to the boy. "By any chance, could you and your friends stop all of this?"

"You're thinking of hurting me if I don't do what you say, aren't you?"

"What? No, I just want to talk about this peacefully so we can get going-"

"You won't take my mama."

Without even moving a single muscle, the boy had lifted Lloyd in the air and flung him back and forth in the branches. He finished by slamming him into the ground in an unconscious state.

"Stop it!" Maria begged them. "Stop hurting them!"

"Don't worry, mama," a little girl with matching brown hair and tail assured her. "They won't take you away."

"Yeah," another with cat ears and white hair said, "we'll destroy them!"

The two had shape-shifted their hands into whips and locked onto Nya and Zane. The two stepped slowly back as the girls approached.

"Now, children, we don't want to hurt you," Zane said calmly, but had a hint of nervousness leak through.

"You're all lying!" they screamed in unison.

"Now, girls," Nya spoke, "he's right. We don't want to fight a couple of kids. So calm down and we can all-"

In that spilt second, the girls had trapped them in their whips. Their grip on them became tighter and tighter, making it hard to breath for them.

'What am I doing?' Maria thought. 'I'm standing here like a ninny, I can't move. It's just like…' She stopped had her hands over her mouth as a gasp escaped her lips, all because of an incident she regretted played back in her head.

" _I don't want to be friends with a selfish coward! I should've dumped you when I first met you!"_

It was just like with the bullies and her old friend. She was a coward, selfish, stupid, naïve, and weak. She was Maria Psyche; a girl who got powers, became a Ninja, and learned she was someone important and loved in another life…but still failed in using them to help herself and others. She was…pathetic.

"Let them go," she whispered. "'Let them go, let them GO!" In her rage, she shot a spirit ball at each of the kids, making them turn with tears in their eyes.

"Mama, why would you try and hurt us?" the normal boy asked.

"I am not your mother!" she yelled at them. "Here's what I want: I want you to stopping pinning them, I want you to stop squeezing them to death, I want you to get them out of that tree, and I want you stop hurting them all! And I want you to do it now!"

They lowered their heads. "Okay, miss." They did as asked with a sad look on their face. The sorrow spread to Maria and overwhelmed her, that she ran over to Lloyd, who, was gaining conscious and began to stand up, and hug him tightly while crying into his shoulder.

"Hey, what wrong, bud?" Lloyd asked as he rubbed her back in comfort.

"I-I yelled at the kids because I-I didn't want to loose my friends again like I did before! Am I a horrible person for trying to take action and be a-a good Ninja? Are you gonna hate me because I acted like a monster?"

"Maria, you're not a monster," he said with a chuckle and a smile. "You're normally unsure of what to do, but you just overcame an obstacle that you couldn't do in the past; you spoke up for your friends. Only a great ninja could do something that brave, and you just did that."

She pulled back and wiped away her tears, allowing a smile to form on her face. The two turned at the sound of the others footsteps. "Are you all alright?" she asked.

"Ah, we're fine," Jay waved off. "Ya know, in some weird way, that little girl got rid of this knot in my back as she was pinning me. I need to stretch like that more often!"

They all shared a laugh at Jay's joke, but it was ended by the five kids walking up nervously. They quickly fell to their knees and began apologizing.

"We're so sorry!"

"We didn't mean to make you cry!"

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry!"

"I'm sorry for throwing the green guy around!"

"I'm sorry I threw those meanies in tree, even though it was funny!"

"You're all forgiven," Maria assured them. "But I know two certain Ninja that have to apologize to a certain little boy…." She glared over at Kai and Cole, who, immediately began apologizing under her burning stare.

"I'm sorry I called you a butterball," Cole apologized.

"And I'm sorry I said you didn't have any muscle. You proved me dead wrong," Kai said.

"Now that the issue has been solved, why did you keep calling Maria 'mama?'" Zane asked the kids.

"She _is_ our mama!" the cat-eared girl said as she stomped her foot. "She's our mama! Mama Seraphina!"

"Mama Seraphina?!" the Ninja exclaimed.

Jay grabbed Maria by the shoulder and whispered, "You never told us you had kids when you lived before!"

"I think I would've remembered that, and I _definitely_ would tell you guys!"

"Ohh, I get it!" Lloyd exclaimed. "It's like Basil told us, Seraphina liked to be called by Sister, Mother, Friend; she didn't like to be called a Queen Seraphina!"

"You're right," Maria said. She kneeled down to the kids eye level and spoke to them. "You could've just told me from the start; it would've been easier for all of us."

"We're sorry," they all replied.

"It's fine, but unless I'm wrong, I'm pretty sure all of you live in a village nearby. And this village is where the Seven Gems came from."

"You're right!" the three-eyed girl said. "You're so smart! But you don't have the gem bearers with you this time. You're alone."

"AHEM!" Kai cleared his throat loudly. He, Jay and Lloyd showed them their gems, getting a loud 'ohhhhh,' from the kids. "I'm surprised you guys didn't notice them."

"We're kids, not geniuses!" the yellow- eyed girl snapped. "But we can still show you where Hybrid Village is!"

The kids began grabbing Maria's hands and leading her to the village. She just smiled and shook head as they all tried to be the one to hold hands with her. Kids will be kids.

* * *

"We're here!" the kids shouted. They raced each other to be the first one to reach the village first that was at the edge of a wide field.

"This place is beautiful!" Nya exclaimed.

It truly was; flowers were in bloom at the edge of a bubbling brook, the houses were built from stone and gave off a nostalgic feel, and the people looked liked the kids. Each one with different eyes, hair colors, some with horns or animal like ears, some more muscular and some so normal at first glance.

"Hey, Cole," Maria said with a smirk, "you think it's okay for me to let me hippie urges loose now?"

"Yeah, yeah, sure. If you'll excuse me, I smell something cooking and I want in!" He took off, the others following suit, laughing as they raced against each other themselves. Ultimately, Cole and his stomach won the race, but it was short lived as the villagers stopped and stared at them.

"Um..hi, everybody," Maria managed to say. "My name is-"

"SERAPHINA HAS RETURNED!"

They gathered around the Ninja, each wanting to shake their hands. They were patient in getting a turn to greet the visitors, but all had a huge smile on their faces.

 **BONG…BONG…BONG**

A gong went off, signaling the villagers to step to the sides and form a row for an old lady in a white cloak and a wooden stick in her hand to observe the visitors herself. She walked slowly towards them, giving Maria chills as she got nearer.

"Hey," Kai whispered in Maria's ear, "look near the lady's collar bone. Her cloak has a symbol like the one you have on your gi."

Maria squinted to see a three spiraled symbol embroidered in pink, just like the one she had on her pin for her gi. She turned her head back and whispered, "You're right, but I don't know what my symbol even means. Sensei Wu is the one who had the design picked out."

"The three spirals represent spirit," the old lady spoke. Maria turned back to see the old lady face to face, making her nervous. "It is said to be what each spirit looks like before it comes into existence as a being with a body or just as a spirit. Child….are you the reincarnation of Seraphina?"

"Yes," Maria said as she lowered her head. "I know I don't look _exactly_ like her, but I have her curl."

The old lady gently held her face in her hand and turned the other half towards her. She looked deeply in Maria's eye, and back at her curl, before saying, "In this part of you, I can see her. There she is alright. But…you don't remember me or anything, do you, child?"

"No, I'm so sorry," Maria said while turning her whole face forward.

"It's all right," the old lady replied. Without warning, she threw her arms around Maria hugged her tightly. "All that matters is you're home….daughter."

* * *

 **THATS RIGHT, IT'S A CLIFFHANGER! MUHAHAHAHA!**

 **Review, ask questions, and vote!**

 **Next chapter on Ninjago: Legend Reborn...**

 **Getting To Know You**

 **Until then, God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good.**


	29. 28: Getting To Know You

**Disclaimer: I don't own Ninjago, just the ocs and story idea.**

 **I'm really sorry this is late, I had a huge test to study for and my mom took technology away until I got a B+ or better, which I did! I was lucky to get online and check my tumblr and post the art for this chapter on my blog. Also….**

 **VOTE! That's all I can say people. The poll is on my profile, I just need some votes.**

* * *

 **Now let's dive in!**

 **Chapter 28: Getting To Know You**

Maria's eyes were wide as she pulled back from the woman's hug. "I'm sorry…but can you repeat what you said?"

The woman smiled and pulled her hood down, revealing her long gray braid and wrinkled face. "Perhaps I should start over and introduce myself. I am Cliona; the Great Elder of the village in which you stand in now. I seek a private meeting with you, child." She grabbed Maria's hand and started to lead her in the direction she had come from.

"Wait a second!" Lloyd shouted as the Ninja ran up to them. "We're her guardians, so we have the right to join you in this private meeting."

Cliona stopped and said with a chuckle, "I never said the rest of you couldn't oversee this meeting." She faced the crowd and addressed them. "My people, prepare a feast in honor of our beloved Mother, our Sister, our Friend, our Seraphina."

The villagers cheered and immediately got to work. They cleaned their houses and adorned them with flowers, with even their children offering to help. Some began to cook soups and stews full of fine herbs and spices. In the midst of their preparations, they acknowledged the Ninja as they passed by with a bow.

"It feels kinda weird having a big fuss made about us," Cole said aloud.

Jay gave him a look in reply. "People make fusses about us all the time back in New Ninjago City. Hello! Celebrities!"

"I believe Cole meant that this is unusual for us considering we've been here for less than 10 minutes," Zane explained.

"The people here recognize you from your past lives," Cliona said with a slight turn of her head. "You may not remember, but you seven were so important to us all. You will understand very soon."

* * *

"…that…picture…," was the first thing Maria said as she stepped into Cliona's stone hut. It was lit up by the open windows that carried a soft breeze through the little hut. In a little ray of light, she had spotted a picture on an old piece of yellowed paper; she recognized it immediately as a picture of Seraphina.

"I remember when I had that picture drawn for her," Cliona said as she put a hand on Maria's shoulder. "She had just started living here not long after the first war started…..she had also left so suddenly."

"I'm never gonna get used to how similar you two look." Kai had walked up to the drawing himself and started observing it. "I mean, it's like you two are twins, but she'd be a lot older than you by a few a hundred years."

"A few thousand years to be exact. How old are you, child?"

"I'm almost 17," Maria said proudly.

"Hey, you're a little younger than me," Lloyd commented as he ruffled her hair. "I guess that makes you the new baby of the group."

"I'm not a baby!" she whined and pushed his hand away.

"She's right," Cliona interrupted them. "In terms of your spirit, you are no spring chicken. Your technical age would be about….5,417 years."

Jay let out a whistle. "I can't believe it. We actually found someone older than Sensei!"

"You better not tell him you said that," Nya scolded him. She turned back to the old woman and asked, "So what was it you wanted to talk about in private?"

"Ah, yes! Sit, children, I need to get some things first."

"On the floor?" Jay asked. "We've been walking all day, don't you have a chair or something?"

"Silence!" Cliona whacked the Blue Ninja over the head with her stick, making him quickly fall to the ground.

"I changed my mind, I love the ground! It's so nice and comfy! Just don't hit me on the head anymore, only one old person can do that, and that's Sensei."

Cliona gave him a short glare before resuming to search through an old wooden chest. She pulled out a medium metal pot, an animal hoof, a pile of bones, and a small knife. She placed the pot in the middle of the circle the Ninja had formed. She tossed the hoof inside, and began cutting away pieces of each bone, tossing each little piece into the pot.

"Do you…want me to heat that up for you?" Kai asked.

"I've been doing this for 5,517 years with out you, young man. I don't need you to 'heat it up.'"

"It was just a simple question," he muttered to Lloyd.

"Just drop it," Lloyd muttered back.

"Now, children," Cliona said as she placed the final bone piece into the pot, "I know you are looking for answers, but I prefer you decide what I should explain first."

"Cliona, tell us about the gems," Maria said. "They're the reason we spent so much time trying to find this place."

"As you wish," she said as she stepped behind the Ninja. She spread out her arms and from the pot came a black smoke, darkening the room. In center of the smoke, it twisted and turned, forming the images of seven gems that shared the Ninja's colors. "The Keys to the Heart, the Seven Gems as you children may know them, were forged here during Dominance.

"I made them myself out of a rare stone known as heartstone; a mysterious rock that can connect with one's heart and bond deeply with their life."

"What do you mean by that?" Cole asked with an arched eyebrow.

"Although heartstone is a strong and durable rock, it may crack and break. I would be quite afraid of the effects and for my life, if I was to wear a gem that was on the verge of breaking into little shards."

Lloyd, Kai, and Jay all gulped before replying, "Noted."

"Anyways, these gems were even more special than any other piece of heartstone; with my own magic power, I had each stone embody a core emotion and a power to give Seraphina a fighting chance against Onryō." The smoke had changed as Cliona waved her arms, and began to form the outlines of six people. "Seraphina sealed him away and peace was restored….but not for long. She could no longer use these gems on her own for her power was spent; she used it on a sacrifice she carried out herself for the greater good."

"What did I-" Maria stopped and shook her head. It wasn't right to say it like that….not after hearing so much already. "What did _Seraphina_ sacrifice to seal him away?"

"Her freedom," Cliona said with slight sorrow in her tone. "She bonded herself with him; she told me herself she couldn't destroy him." Cliona cleared her throat and continued on. "She had found six humans who hearts overfilled with one emotion that matched up with a gem, granting them the ability to wield them.

"From then on, she had established peace with these humans and formed her personal guard: The Knights of Life." She raised her arms and the smoke had vanished, letting the light return.

"That's a nice dramatic ending and all, but what about these hybrids we've been hearing about?" Cole asked.

"Oh that's simple," Cliona replied as she cleaned up. "The people of this village are hybrids; descendants of humans and all sorts of spirits and demons that managed to fall in love and have children. They are a strong and powerful people, with the potential to do things even their ancestors couldn't do."

"No kidding, those kids almost killed us back there!" Jay exclaimed.

"Oh, I just remembered!" Lloyd said. "Can you tell us about the second war?"

"….I-I…can not," Cliona whispered.

The Ninja exchanged confused looks at the sudden change in the old woman. Maria walked over and put a hand on her shoulder. "I understand if it's private information and you can only tell me, so I'm sure my friends can leave for a second and we can-"

" **I CAN NOT!"**

Maria jumped back at Cliona's sudden outburst, hiding herself behind the other Ninja. She didn't understand what she said wrong. She was trying to help her feel more comfortable in talking. She was just trying to help.

Cliona quickly turned around with a mortified look on her face. "Forgive me, Seraphina!"

Her apology made Maria hid herself even more. This woman wasn't apologizing to Seraphina; any part of Maria that Cliona knew to be Seraphina was gone. She was someone new, some _thing_ new that didn't remember any of this, but felt guilty for…leaving Cliona all alone, she assumed. "I-it's Maria…"was the only thing she could squeak out.

"Forgive me then…M- M-Maria."

 **BONG…..BONG….BONG…**

"It's time, children!" Cliona said loudly. "It is time for the feast to begin!"

* * *

All the villagers had gathered and sat in a circle at the bottom of great camphour tree, piles of food were stacked in the center that made the Ninja's mouth water. Large hunks of meat were piled on top, plates of breads that were fresh out of the oven filled the air, bowls of herbed soups that were in reach; it was too much to try and wait any longer. Cole was the bravest one to try and reach just one small helping of-

"Grandma Cliona's gonna whip you if you eat early," a little voice chimed out. The sound made the Ninja turn and immediately tense up when they saw the five children from before.

"Uhh…nice to see you again," Zane managed to say.

"It's nice to see you, too!" the cat eared girl said as she stepped over the Ninja and made her way to Maria's lap. "I didn't get to tell you my name, mama! I'm Frostina, I was named that because I was born in winter and I have white fur. Oh, I'm so silly, you probably don't even know what kind of hybrid I am because I forgot to tell you!"

"I'm guessing you're…a kitsune?" Maria guessed as she focused on the girl's ears.

"Nope, I'm a kitsune!" the brown haired cried out as she swung her arms around Maria's neck by surprise. "I'm Vixxie! Frostina is a bakeneko; it's a kind of shapeshifting cat!"

The three turned when Jay had let out a yelp as the three eyed girl had grabbed his arm and rested her head on his shoulder. "You're really _CUUUTTEE_!" she said as she batted her eyes. "I'm Arachne."

"And I liked you better when you were trying to kill me," Jay said, hoping to get spider hybrid girl off him, but she just held on tighter and had a huge grin plastered on her face.

"Did you hear that? He likes me!"

"Who's you're new girlfriend, Jay?" Lloyd teased.

"Not funny. And why are you smiling? At least I have a girlfriend!"

The Ninja, excluding Lloyd who began blushing and tried hiding his face, laughed at the conversation as the two boys squeezed in on either side of Kai. He stopped his laughter as he could felt their stare burning right through him. He gave them a nervous and asked, "Can I help you with you something?"

"Your hair is so spikey!" the chubby boy exclaimed while tugging gently at one of his spikes.

"Okay…thanks for telling me, whatever your name is."

"Thud," the boy replied. "I'm an oni hybrid."

"An oni…" Jay thought aloud. "Hey, Kai, when you got your gem, didn't you have to kill a-"

"So!" Nya said loudly while turning to the last hybrid boy, "what kind of hybrid are you?"

"I'm Sora," he replied timidly. "My dad was a tengu."

"I've heard of tengu," Maria said. "They can control the wind, which explains how you were able to hurt Lloyd without even touching him. But they either have red skin and long noses, or they look like some sort of bird demon. Sora, you kinda look…normal."

"I have wings!" he protested. "I keep them under my clothes, people complain about how they find my feathers in their food and stuff. It's kind of….uncomfortable to keep them tucked away."

 **BONG…..BONG….BONG…**

The gong echoed with each hit as Cliona stepped into the center of the circle. The villagers bowed down, while keeping their sitting position. The Ninja followed the villagers lead and bowed in respect as well. It wasn't until Cliona hit her staff on the ground and had forget me nots bloom all around the villagers, the Ninja, and the tree.

"My people," she said with a tone of that of a leader, "we have been blessed with the presence of Seraphina's reincarnation. May we give thanks for her arrival here, along with the arrival of the reincarnated Knights of Life. We eat in celebration of them, of life, of hope."

She stopped as the people cheered. "Now let the feast begin!"

"I thought she'd never ask!" Cole shouted as he grabbed as much food. The others gathered their share more politely. As soon as they were were about to take their first bite, the Ninja noticed all eyes were on them, making them feel uncomfortable.

"Did we do something wrong?" Maria whispered to Lloyd. "They're starting to scare me a little…."

"You're the higher authority here," Arachne whispered. "They're waiting for you to give the orders, Grandma Cliona gave _you_ permission to eat, not us."

"Uh… You may begin…consumption?" Maria tried to say in a professional way. The villagers exchanged confused glances at each other, making Maria lean over to Lloyd once more and whisper, "Help me out here, please."

"I got this," he whispered. He turned back to the villagers and shouted, "Eat up!" The villagers understood and grabbed what they could, practically inhaling every bite.

"How'd you know that would work?"

"It's how they got us to eat back at Darkly's," Lloyd shrugged. "It was either that or they'd yell, 'Eat your slop, you little demons!' They had to get that gross food in our mouths one way or another."

"That rough, buddy," Thud said, his mouth full with a giant drumstick. "That sounds like something a worker at a camp would say."

"What do you mean by that?" Nya asked.

"During the war, there was camps-"

"Oh, you mean back during Dominance."

"Nope, he meant during Hybrids," Sora explained. "It was the second war, and it's all about us hybrids."

"Why was it about you?" Zane asked. "Was there an issue amongst the hybrids?"

"There wasn't an issue _among_ us, the issue _was_ us."

Maria was slurping her soup at this time, but nearly chocked on it when she heard this. She tried acting normal, but continued to listen in on the conversation.

"People didn't trust hybrids," Frostina said. "They were scared, so they made us slaves, put us in camps if we weren't useful enough or didn't look pretty enough. Kingdoms were built on our ancestors backs."

"You mean to tell me that people made a living off of your ancestors' pain?" Kai asked in disbelief.

"They did," Vixxie said, "but Seraphina saved them!"

That did it, that was all she could take. Maria jumped from her seat and ran. She didn't care if the others called after her, she didn't care if she made a scene that caused worry among the villagers. She just had to run away from hearing this, run away from it all.

* * *

Tears had blurred up most of Maria's vision, but she was able to find her way back into Cliona hut. Back to that picture of….her? No, Seraphina, smiling and looking all perfect. She couldn't stand the sight of it anymore.

She began to reach for the picture and thought of all the things she could do. She could shred it into tiny pieces, throw each piece into a fire, bury the ashes deep into the ground. She could just get rid of it all.

"Child, what are you doing?"

Maria stopped at the sound of Cliona's voice, but held her position.

"Child, don't do this. I'm not sure why you feel upset, but-"

"Why didn't you tell me about Hybrids? Why did you keep it secret from me?"

Cliona took in a deep breath. "You became a daughter to me in the time we spent together, Seraphina."

"I'm not Seraphina!" Maria cried out as she whipped around. "Don't you see? I can't be her, she was terrible! She died and became me, and made me forget everything! Those people out there look up to me, but I just left them to fend for themselves!"

She walked close to Cliona, lifted her chin up and showed her her scar. "Do you see this? It's a reminder that I was terrible once, a coward. Don't try and convince me that I'm reincarnated from this woman who left her people to die after she saved them! Do you know what that would make me?! A MONSTER!"

Maria fell to her knees and began to cry after screaming all that was on her mind. She buried her hands and let it all out. It wasn't until she felt a hand go through her hair that made her look up at Cliona's face. It was a face of not a mother, but a friend.

"Child, Seraphina didn't always do what was best for her, even when she could. She always had a plan, but I never doubted it wouldn't turn out for the best. She made the Knights of Life and made us more unified during both wars. Her best plan yet was when she became you."

Cliona kneeled and pulled Maria in for a hug, letting her rest her head on her shoulder. "You may be reborn from her, but that doesn't mean you must be exactly like her. You can be someone and something better. Maria, you get to be you."

"Cliona, I-"

 **KA-BOOOM!**

"What was that?!" Maria screamed as they both shot up.

"Maria! Cliona! Open up!" Jay voices was heard as he pounded on the door. Neither had a chance to open it as it was kicked open by Cole, with the rest of the Ninja on the other side.

"Jay, are you nuts!? We're under attack, there's no time for knocking!"

"How'd you guys know I was here? What going on?"

"Cliona was the one who sensed you were headed here," Lloyd explained. "There's an explosion happening near the field. We checked it out and found out we're under attack!"

"Child, I have a barrier around the village that allows only those with pure hearts to enter. Nothing can hurt us."

Jay let out a nervous chuckle. "Well, I think you might wanna rethink that because, and it's not that big of a deal, but… ALL OF ONRYŌ'S CAPTAINS ARE ATTACKING THE VILLAGE!"

* * *

 **QUESTION TIME!**

 **Ebony Umbreon asked: Does Seraphina have a mother?**

 **Nope, if you recall, she was made out of the hope of people who passed away in the war. So technically she has a million mothers, but at the same time, she has no parents.**

 **Next chapter on Ninjago:Legend Reborn…..**

 **The First Strike**

 **Until then, God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good.**


	30. 29: The First Strike

**Disclaimer: Ninjago: not mine. Ocs and story idea: MINE!**

 **March 19** **th** **, there's a big announcement at the bottom about that date.**

 **Now let's go!**

* * *

 **Chapter 29: The First Strike**

Cliona just chuckled once more, making the Ninja give her a look. "Cliona, didn't you just hear what Jay said?" Maria asked. "All of Onryō's captains are here!"

"Children, you are unaware of the barrier. It is made from my magic; that big camphor tree we sat at for the feast has a barrier emanating from it, it can even block out Onryō's allies."

"So what you're saying is…we're safe?" Kai asked.

"Of course. They can try all they want, but they could never reach us. Unless they had a gem." The Ninja tensed up and let out nervous laughs at that statement, making Cliona ask, "Did I say something humorous to you, children?"

"It might be possible…that they have the white gem!" Lloyd quickly ducked in case she would strike, but the old woman just laughed once more.

"Children, we may have to fight now, but they can't do any real harm!" she said with a smile. "The white gem's power is a defensive type. It will not be hard to reclaim it."

They all turned and smiled at each other. It was all peaceful until Jay spoke up. "Did you hear that, Zane? You'll be able to get your gem back from Kitsune!"

Now, while it may be written in some old text, the kind of spirit Cliona is can be typically known as a kind old woman who's stopped many natural disasters and tragedies with her powers. However, there have been cases of certain types of spirits losing control of their powers momentarily in an extreme shift of emotion such as: anger, sorrow, or joy. The effect is called an "emotion-shift;" a state where powers will be unleashed to the point where they revert back to their original form as a spirit that has come into existence, but reflects the emotion they've emotion-shifted with.

And that's what she'd done; Cliona emotion-shifted into a red swirling spirit that resembled the spirit symbol, but swirled around like fire. It all happened in an instant when she shifted and towered over the Ninja against the door of her hut. Her eyes glowed a piercing white as she stared at them intensely. Her voice was booming and slightly distorted from her sweet old lady tone as she spoke to them.

"You mean to say that _Kitsune_ has possession of the _white gem_ , and he is here now ATTACKING US?!"

"Umm…Lloyd is," Cole said while pointing at the leader, trying to get the attention of her off of him.

"It's not that big of a deal," Nya said in an attempt to calm her down. "You said it had a defensive power, remember?"

"But certain gems matched up with a certain member of Onryō's captains can enhance their strength tenfold! Kitsune is a master of illusion and shapeshifting, his power is beyond any other shapeshifter. The gem has the power of illusions, which is why it should never fall into Kitsune's hands. BUT NOW HE HAS IT, **HIS POWER HAS BECOME UNSPEAKABLE AND MORE DEADLY THAN IT EVER WAS!"**

"So…that's bad, right?" Jay asked.

She inhaled deeply and end her raged filled shift, her eyes remaining shut. No one moved to try to get her to speak, and none had a chance as in one swift motion, she whacked her stick in each of their guts. As they fell to their knees and clenched their stomachs, she turned to walk out and said, "I will alert the villagers and try to do what I can to strength the barrier. Also, I took the blue one's preference on discipline and did not inflict pain on your head, but rather, your guts."

Just like that she walked out of the room. "Way to…give her…an idea, Jay!" Cole squeaked out as he tried to stand. "Now we have two old people who will whack us to death by a stick!"

"Now's not the time to fight each other," Lloyd said while standing, but continuing to rub his stomach, "we have an enemy to fight, and it's not each other! We need to stop them from entering the village and attacking the people. We have to go now!"

His teammates nodded, while whipping out their weapons and sliding on their hoods, running out to the fight. All of them had already made it almost halfway…except for two certain Ninja. One holding the other back, another struggling to make some distance.

"Lloyd, let me go! We have to get to the fight!" Maria continued to try and release herself from his grip, but he still held her up from the ground, making her kick her legs furiously to be released.

"I can't do that, this is too dangerous for you to come along," he told her. "I want you to stay and mind Cliona while we're out protecting the village."

"Remember when I said I wanted to get stronger and fight for Ninjago? I meant it, and I don't want to be a selfish coward anymore! Now let me go!"

"And I said I was going to watch over you, but you also have to listen to me!" Lloyd said in a more scolding tone. "Stay here where it's safe. No one's calling you that name anymore, so stay here and-"

"I'm not gonna hide anymore! I'm gonna fight! I'm gonna FIGHT! LET ME FIGHT! LET ME-!"

" **Do you want to die and make everyone hate you?!"**

A calm had swept down on Maria, making her stop her struggling. She was perfectly still and lowered her head just enough to make her hood over her eyes in a small shadow. Though he couldn't see it, she was frowning, yet had a calm over her hidden face as well. Maria finally shook her head ever so gently.

He continued on in a more gentle tone. "Maria, if you go out there and get…really _hurt_ , then all we've been training for- all _you've_ been training for- will be for nothing. The balance will be broken…..do you want that to happen?"

She shook her head again. "Also, maybe the whole world might not fall apart, but things will get bad and you're gonna leave us one Ninja short. Do you to leave us-leave me- all alone? I don't think some of them will forgive you."

"No," she whispered. Maria continued to stay quiet as Lloyd set her down and ran off. She felt her eyes getting a familiar feeling that she knew it meant she was about to cry, but she shook it away. This is what had to be done….Lloyd had to fight and she had to be the one who….the one who gets to live.

"Aren't you going to help them?" Maria whipped around to see Cliona with a smile on her face.

"You…you need to protect the village by fixing the tree, remember?" Maria lowered her head and awkwardly held her arm, embarrassed by what Cliona might have seen.

"Maria, you know you want to help them. Why do you hesitate?"

"I've disobeyed Lloyd before and I lied to him a couple times….it didn't feel good to lie to a friend. I don't wanna do it again, I might loose his trust in me."

"But he's more than a friend to you," Cliona said, making Maria look up as she completely understood. "What is loosing trust compared to loosing the one who gives you that trust, especially when he's so close to you? Will you go now and defend him, or will you repeat your past pain by your own will?"

Maria just stood dumbfounded at her words. It was history repeating itself all over again; the baddies were coming after her, but she stayed back and let her friends do her work. Fear wasn't weighing her down this time, this time, she had something she didn't have at all back then when she was a kid.

A choice.

* * *

A blood red sky had risen as the captains of Onryō's guard marched to the Hybrid Village. They wasted no time using their unique powers in breaking down the barrier that guarded the place, Goryō was an exception as he, in his own words, decided to supervise the attack.

"Come on, Goryō!" Kitsune whined while walking back up to him. "I have a gem, I've been shapeshifting into mallets and swords, can't I just walk in and capture some of those freaky hybrids?"

"You're doing fine," he smoothly said.

"But nothing's happening! Harionago has half her hair, Jorōgumo is just shooting webs, and Gashadokuro is just, just….trying to build muscle that he will never have!"

"I heard that, you fluffy cat with eyeliner!"

Kitsune gave a quick glare in Gashadokuro's direction. "Point being: what are we even doing?!"

"We are drawing them out. I sense those pesky humans have reached this place, along with that abomination of a reincarnation. I already used my powers to create an explosion; however, I suppose we could speed up the process," he said with a grin as his fist was lit up with flames.

Kitsune let out a squeal. "You mean I…get to do the thing?"

Goryō just offered his firey fist to the fox demon. "Burn them out."

Kitsune let out a laugh and set fire to his nine tails, running around the borders of the barrier and lighting the fields up. "I'm doing it! Roasty toasty princess~ Roasty toasty princess~" he sang while laughing like a maniac.

The fire spread past the border and slowly fed on the grassy fields, eating away at their life. The demons let out a cackle as their plan was working, especially as six Ninja came running towards the border. Nya and Zane wasted no time in spraying water and ice at the raging flames, unaware that all six of them had stepped away from their sanctuary. When it was done, the Ninja stood with their weapons, ready to fight.

Goryō stepped from the group and bowed. "I don't believe I properly introduced myself to all of you. I am Goryō, first ranked in King Onryō's guard." He ripped off his cloak and revealed his lower half, making the Ninja exchanged surprised looks.

"Are you some kind of…centaur?" Zane asked.

"How dare you insult him!" Harionago exclaimed. "He is a Goryō; he's the most powerful of any other in the Goryō class, and second best in the Onryō species."

"Hey, did you get a haircut?" Jay asked teasingly as he noticed half of her hair was sloppily cut. "It's a good look for you."

"My hair was ruined by that porcupine-headed friend of yours! He disgraced my title as a lady!"

"Now hold on a sec," Kai said as he stepped forth from the line. "I would never hurt a lady. Instead, I hurt a….I'm sorry, what are you again?"

Letting out a shriek of anger, Harionago grabbed him with her remaining hair and flung him behind her. It wasn't long before each of the Ninja had ran up and locked themselves in combat with one of the demons. Lloyd had gone after Goryō, Jay and Nya ran to Jorōgumo, Cole charged himself at Gashadokuro, Zane went to Kitsune, and Kai was, of course left with Harionago. He landed on the ground, but was flung into the air again and landed with great force again.

Harionago walked up to him slowly with her teeth grinding against each other. "You are _pathetic_. You can crack Gashadokuro's skull in your past life, but you can't lay a hit on me? It's all because of that fancy armor you have; without it, you're a big baby who throws tantrums when their angry to hide the fact that they're gonna cry, no matter how many times you're reincarnated."

"You're…you're wrong," Kai weakly said as he peeled himself off the ground. He stood up with a wobble and unsheathed his sword. "I get mad when my friends are in danger, because they've been hurt before and I could've done something all those times they were hurting. Instead, I was a bit of baby like you said, but not any more."

He ran towards her and furiously thrusted his sword at her. She deflected each attack with her hair; Harionago attempted to strike when he pulled his sword back by spinning and thrusting her hair at his neck, but Kai grabbed it and used his spinjitzu to swing her around. She struggled, but was able to free herself as she got slightly nauseous from the attack. He finally stopped, and while she was in mid air he shouted to her, "By the way, I prefer to use my armor on monsters that are worth it!"

He pulled her in, and, as she was flying towards him at full force, he used the handle of his sword to knock her out cold as he punched her in her collarbone. She fell limp to the ground as he sheathed his sword. "I'm finally glad to get that brat out of my hair."

* * *

"So I heard you're the strongest of the group," Gashadokuro said, his voice bellowing out as he looked down at Cole. "However, I recall I trapped you easily back in the Dark Woods. What's your excuse, weakling?"

"Okay, if you knew me well, you would know to never call me weak!" Cole charged up the skeleton's arm, when he reached his spine, he swung his scythe into the space between the bones that made it up. His attack, however, didn't go as planned as he was stuck. When he tried to free himself, Gashadokuro had already picked him up by his scythe, trapped him in both of his hands, and furiously shook him around.

When it was over, Gashadokuro opened his hands to see Cole laying flat in his huge palms, trying to catch his breath. "I knew it, " Gashadokuro said with a cackle, " you are nothing but a mere weakling, and you know why? Because you don't know what you want, you act tough as though you could take on this cruel world by yourself. Problem is that life is hard, and it's even harder when you're precious friends aren't giving you orders on what to do with your meaningless existence."

"Maybe… Maybe I am scared of being alone," Cole whispered, not caring if Gashadokuro heard him or not. It only mattered that he heard himself. "I was alone once, just one night I was alone and forgotten….it hurt a lot and I didn't know what to do without my friends. I do know what I want now, and that's to destroy you!"

In a burst of energy, Cole jumped up and landed a strong punch, right on the crack in Gashadokuro's head. The skeleton held it in pain and screamed, giving Cole a chance to get his feet back on the earth. He struck it and formed sharp rock peaks that reached heights parallel to Gashadokuro. By his own will, he commanded them to close in on the demon skeleton, trapping him in a tight grip.

"You coward!" Gashadokuro shouted as he swiped in the cracks of the stone prison. "You rely on your powers, your friends! They will never be there for you forever! You will will be alone again, that's when I will destroy you!"

"Maybe I will be alone when we fight again," Cole said to him with a smirk. "Maybe something might happen to my powers, but the thing is, just because my friends might not be there by my side doesn't mean they're not with me!"

* * *

Kitsune and Zane were locked in combat; Kitsune had gone feral and was on top of Zane, snapping away at his neck. The White Ninja finally pushed the fox off of him and shot a stream of ice at him, freezing him in a block of ice. Zane walked cautiously towards him, his shurikens ready to be thrown, when Kitsune had bursted from it.

"That's was the last straw, shiny boy! You've been messing with the big boys, but now it's time to play a big boy game, son!"

With that yell, the gem on Kitsune's neck began to glow, the area around the two had turned dark. He had trapped Zane and him in a dark realm to have the fear inside him grow. "What will you do now, tin man?" Kitsune asked in a mocking manner.

"I am aware your power is stronger with that gem, but it doesn't scare me," Zane confidently said. "I have P.I.X.A.L; she is always with me!"

"I didn't ask to hear your love story!" Kitsune shouted. "But while you're fighting me with that girl of yours, what about your other friends? Don't they matter to you?"

"Zane," several voices called from the darkness. Out from it stepped the other Ninja….but they were aging. Slowly, wrinkles formed on their faces, their hair turned to a old white, their voices became weaker as they continued to speak in unison, "Zane, why did you leave us? Why didn't you die with us?"

Zane was mortified, his heart was racing at this sight. "No, I never forgot you or left you! You are my brothers and sisters; I would never leave you!"

"Zane," they said again as they fell to their knees, slowly fading into dust, "you could've stayed with us in the afterlife. But you didn't…..you were never living in the first place, nindroid."

Zane clamped his hands on the sides of his head and shook it furiously. "No, no, no! I _am_ living! I can't help it that I'm a nindroid!" He fell to his knees and shut his eyes tightly as he screamed at the top of his lungs. _**"I didn't ask to be made immortal!"**_

" _Aquilo,"_ a soft voiced spoke. Zane opened his eyes to everything around him was white; a snowstorm was blowing all around him. He looked in front of him to see Seraphina smiling and starting to bend down to his level, making him nervous. _"That is your name, is it not?"_

He tried to answer her, but his mouth wouldn't allow him to let a single word slip out. This all felt familiar, as though he was reliving a memory from his past- wait…..he couldn't have a past life. He was a nindroid, he was built. He was man-made, not living at all, so how was this possible?

" _I know you're very scared, but you don't have to be anymore. At least, not like the way you've been you're whole life. You could use your fear as a weapon; rather, have it be used against you like weapon."_ She held out her hand, which contained a small round gem that blended in with the snow.

" _Aquilo, will you come with me to learn how to your fear can be good?"_

"I..I will." He grabbed her hand and hosted himself up, as a bright light pushed away the memory.

" _Zane, can you read me?"_

"Seraphina?" he asked, confused at the change in her voice.

" _No, it's P.I.X.A.L! What happened? You passed out and Kitsune was charging at you, but you just grabbed the gem of his neck so simply!"_

Zane let out a small gasp and looked down at his hand. It was empty for his gem had latched onto the left side of his chest, right over his heart as a brooch in the form of an elegant design. He smiled at it proudly, but the moment was stopped as he heard groaning. The nindroid looked to see Kitsune getting himself back off the ground, his fangs bared.

"How?!" he screamed. "How did you steal it?! That gem is mine!"

"I'm afraid not," Zane said, walking over to him with a stern look on his face. "You see, Kitsune, it is mine. Someone long ago gave it to me; I remember that she believed in me, she had hope in _me,_ a man full of fear. I may not be able to harness its power now, but I will in time."

He placed a foot on the weak fox's forehead and said with a smirk, "Also, you can't scare me anymore. Fear is _my_ weapon; it is not a weapon used against me." He kicked him back, and out Kitsune went like a light.

* * *

Nya and Jay were a perfect match when it came to fighting, but Jorōgumo had proven them wrong as she had them in a tight grip in her spider legs. She cackled out, "You two used to a power couple, what happened? You're both weak and pathetic, you know that, right?"

"And you know that I can see the future, right?" Jay shot back.

"Oh, really? What do you see now, boy?"

"That you should duck if you wanna keep your head!"

She merely looked as she didn't believe him entirely, but it was exactly as Jay had seen . Using his free hand he kept hidden, he swung his nunchucks at her head, momentarily making her drop them as she held her head in pain. She whipped around and screamed, "You will pay, you brats!"

"I'd liked to see you try!" Nya shot a thick blast of water, which, was followed up with Jay shooting a bolt of lightning at Jorōgumo as well. The attack had her stunned, allowing them to charge in and attack. But it was too late when Jay had seen the next vision: Jorōgumo had Nya pinned down with her own sword pointed at her throat.

He shook it away, but it had already happened when that vision played through his head. "Let go of her!"

"Take another step, and she perishes!" Jorōgumo pressed Nya's sword against her throat just as little more. "Why do you even care if she dies? She has everything and you have nothing; you should find someone that's within your social class!"

"You're wrong!" Nya exclaimed from her position. "I'm with Jay because we understand each other. He never got to meet his real parents and I lost mine when I was a kid!"

Jorōgumo's eyes softened, she glanced at Nya with almost kindness. "You…lost your family?"

Jay took this moment to charge at her and push her off of Nya. He whipped his nunchucks around her throat, and, with the metal in them enhancing his powers, he gave her a full powered shock of lighting. When it was over, she fell to the ground, shaking and almost shriveling up like a bug.

"Yes!" Jay cheered. "We did it! You know, if I wasn't a Ninja, I would be a great pest control guy!"

"Or you would make a nice bug zapper," Nya teased.

"Not now, I'm having a moment."

* * *

Goryō and Lloyd circled each other, waiting for the other to make the first move. Lloyd kept his sword at the ready while Goryō had a smirk plastered on his face.

"Tell me, boy, where is Seraphina?" Goryō asked.

"Her name is Maria, and she's someplace safe."

"I see. That means you're alone," he slyly said.

"I'm not alone, my friends are always with me, just as I'm always with them!" Hearing enough, Lloyd charged at Goryō…but he disappeared. He stopped and looked around, when a strong force punched him from behind.

"Am I too fast for you?" Goryō asked, as Lloyd peeled hisself off the ground. "I am the most powerful of all Goryō, did you forget that, Oliver?"

"That's not my name," Lloyd declared as he stood up. "It's Lloyd, and you need to move on from this. We may be reincarnated, but my friends and I are not the people you fought thousands of years ago!"

"I knew that already. Your fighting skills lack. I guess you have your dear daddy and uncle to blame."

Lloyd felt anger surging through him. He lost control and shot multiple balls of energy at Goryō, but like he said, he was indeed very fast, dogging them all with ease. "How do you know about my father and uncle?!"

"We've been watching you, boy. We're always watching, ever since you first came into existence as Oliver. Even in our state of a sleeping death, we knew you were out there, waiting to end this all. And now we will, in this first battle of Chaos: The Battle of the Hybrid Village!

"Problem is that you are weak." Goryō vanished again, and, in a link of an eye, appeared in front of Lloyd and sent a flurry of punches into his gut. As a final blow, he punched him in his jaw, sending him flying to the edge of the woods. "You're nothing but a weak little boy," Goryō said as he began walking towards Lloyd.

"You're wrong," the Green Ninja said as he stood up. "I remember….Seraphina once told me….my joy and compassion is my weapon…that it would help me if I placed it in my friends."

Goryō towered over like a shadow. A disgusted look was on his face as he said, "I guess she would've said anything to keep you from annoying her at night with your crying."

That was the final straw. Lloyd was growling and charged at Goryō with one fist charging up an energy blast, the other, his sword pointed at Goryō's heart, if he even had one. He let loose his energy blast and swung his sword in all directions as the smoke rose from the explosion of his attack. When the smoke was gone completely, Goryō was now where to be found.

"SURPRISE!"

With his fist on fire, he punched Lloyd right in his jaw. He was sent flying once more, the impact making him dive into the ground until he stopped. His mask had melted off, dirt and mud cover d his face and green gi. He was deep in a crater as Goryō towered over him once more.

"You are nothing but a weak little boy," he said as he lifted a fist high above his head. "But don't worry, I'll end your pain right now!"

"No, you won't!" From the side, Maria gave an uppercut to Goryō's jaw, sending him back a little. In that time he was regaining himself, she ran over to Lloyd and helped him out of the crater. "Are you okay?"

"I told you to stay with Cliona!" he scolded her. "Why don't you listen to me?"

"I'm not going to leave you alone, Lloyd. I don't care if you don't trust me after this, I rather loose that then loose you!"

"Maria, I specifically told you-" Lloyd started.

"No, listen to me!" Maria cut him off. "You're my friend, and I wanna be a good friend back to you. I'm tired of being the girl that hides behind like a princess; if I am an actual princess, I don't want to fall into the stereotypes of what it means to be one! I wanna fight by your side, but if the only way for me to get stronger is to take action against your orders, then so be it!"

She ran off, leaving Lloyd to struggle to stand and walk off the pain. She's marched right up to Goryō and looked him in the eye. "I want you to apologize for all those mean things you said to Lloyd!"

A wicked smile instantly grew on his face as he completely ignored her request. "Ahh, the Spirit Princess, we finally meet again. I'm enchanted to be in your presence….for combat." He began to walk closer towards her, scaring her slightly, but she shook it off and did something she didn't even realize she had done.

"Get back!" With that scream, Maria had tried giving him a high kick, but when he tried to counter with a punch, she dodged in a way that caused her to spin around, faster and faster…she was doing spinjitzu. "Ninjago!" she shouted as she punched him with another uppercut right under his chin.

She stopped her pink spinjitzu tornado and stood with a confused look on her face. "What just happened?"

"You've gotten stronger, child," Goryō said with slight impressiveness in his tone. He looked at his allies and saw how each was defeated. Glancing back at Maria, he said, "We will meet again. For now, you've won the first strike." Just like that, all of the demons had disappeared.

"Wait, I just started fighting!" Maria exclaimed as she pulled off her hood. "Come back!"

"Hey, Maria!" She turned to see all of them running towards her.

"We won!" Jay cheered.

"And I got my gem!" Zane proudly said.

It didn't matter to her, as she turned to see Lloyd with a firm look on his face. With a gulp, she tried to explain. "I'm sorry, but I don't want to loose you. I understand if you're a little mad."

"A _little_ mad?" he asked in disbelief. "You've disobeyed me three times now, put yourself in danger, put the balance in danger, put us in danger, put a whole village in danger that's full of innocent people and-!"

She closed her eyes, preparing for the worst. Instead she was pulled into a tight embrace by Lloyd himself. "You did spinjitzu for the first time! I'm so proud of you!"

Proud. She never had a friend be proud of her, and it felt kinda nice. "You're not mad at me?" Maria asked as she pulled back a little.

"Well, I'm gonna have a talk with you about this later, so you're not off the hook completely. Still, I'm proud your training has payed off for you." He ruffled her hair and gave her a smile.

"Children,"Cliona's voice called out. They turned to see her walking towards them with a smile on her face. "We've won the first battle of Chaos, and they will never be able to came back here again. I've taken care of that."

The Ninja cheered before Cole let out a groan. "By the way, I don't know about you guys, but I'm beat. I'm spending the night here," he yawned as he walked off.

The others followed, expect for Lloyd as he protested. "Guys, you can't just-"

"It's fine, child, "Cliona assured him. "I already made arrangements for you Ninja to sleep here for the night. I also must say that Maria's heart is healing quite nicely."

"You know about it? Tell me, how is her heart sick?"

"It is past pain that cracked her heart, throwing all her emotions off balance. She's making progress; however, I sense a strange anomaly in her hope, which may be why she supplies false hope for her heart."

"I guess it's from her past with her friend that weighs her down." Lloyd let out a yawn and walked back to the village to get some rest himself. "Goodnight, Cliona."

'If only you knew,' Cliona thought to herself. 'This pain she has is one she may never understand or recover from.'

* * *

 **This is a long one, which is why it took some time to post.**

 **March 19** **th** **people…..is Maria's birthday! She's gonna be 2 years old( 17 in the story). Get ready for a special chapter that day, and be ready to send her your birthday wishes.**

 **Next chapter on Ninjago: Legend Reborn…..**

 **The Unlikely Suspect**

 **Until then, God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good.**


	31. 30: The Unlikely Suspect

**Disclaimer: I don't own Ninjago, just the story idea and OCs. And if you steal them, I will find you.**

 **So, I'm about to reach 4,000 views total on my story! But I have to discuss a few things below: Hands of Time, Birthday chapters, and voting.**

 **Without further ado, let's head in!**

* * *

 **Chapter 30: The Unlikely Suspect**

 **In the Dying Kingdom…..**

"Kitsune, you have failed me!" Onryō shouted at the cowering fox. "You lost a gem to Seraphina's forces, and because of your pride, you cost us the first battle of Chaos!"

"My King, that's false. Goryō led the attack and called the retreat!" he countered, pointing a paw behind him where he knew Goryō himself stood smirking. "Why isn't he getting punished?"

"Goryō has proven himself to be a great warrior, which is more than I can say for you. For your punishment, you are sentenced to-"

Kitsune stood tall and interrupted the Demon King. "Please, My King, don't send me down _there_! I'm here to serve you, and you alone, no matter what. Please have mercy-"

" **SHUT YOUR MOUTH!"**

The fox demon gulped, his ears flattened against his head as he cowered close to the ground once more. "You are to retrieve the gems those pathetic humans have stolen by possessing one of them or their allies."

"I can't do that, My King. Even though I'm the strongest shapeshifter, I haven't been able to fully control the side effects-" Kitsune stopped as Onryō's eyes flashed yellow. "On second thought, I'll go prepare right now!"

He scampered out of the throne room and past Goryō. Goryō walked over to the King and leaned against his cage bars while crossing his arms. He turned his head with a smirk on his face and said, "I know you feel the power, My King. What that child did must have helped you gain some strength in return."

Instead of speaking, Onryō reached out a huge clawed arm from the bars of his prison. He firmly grasped one bar, and just like that, pulled it out of place and disintegrated it into dust. He let out a chuckle as his unrealistically white teeth formed a wicked smile that gave off a dim light.

"'Some' is an understatement."

* * *

 **Back in Ninjago the next day…..**

Lloyd had already counted 9 sets of leg lifts for Maria's warm up for the day. Just one more set to go, and she would've completed her full set of 100. She was panting and sweating hard, but he knew she had already accepted it as a part of her punishment and spinjitzu training.

The other Ninja were on deck, finishing up their regular stretches. The whole time, they looked over at the training session and continued to get worried it was too much for her. Zane was the one who walked over and asked Lloyd, "I fear you may be pushing her too hard. Should she not take a break?"

"You said so yourself that she's great at punching, but weak at kicking," Lloyd explained. "This will help her build lower body strength to fix that. Plus her spinjitzu was a bit wobbly, so I'm killing two birds with one stone by having her do this."

"But she's so sensitive," Nya said, as she and the other Ninja walked over to the scene. "You're always protective of her, but now your gonna push her till she faints?"

"I think Maria's getting some edge," Cole commented. "I mean, she's done 9 sets already, so maybe she's a bit tougher now than she was then."

"I'm done!" Maria weakly called out, laying flat on the deck with her arms and legs spread wide.

"Good job, bud!" Lloyd called back. "Do some leg stretches, then go ahead and take a break."

"Lloyd, I can't feel my lower body. What do I do now?"

Nya walked away from the group and proceeded to help the Pink Ninja with her stretches. At the time, the Ninja, excluding Lloyd, signaled each other with a sort nod and crowded around him. Their arms were folded and their eyes were locked on him with intensity.

Lloyd arched an eyebrow at this. "Is there something you wanna ask me?"

"What did Cliona tell you the other day back at the Hybrid Village?" Kai asked. "We saw you when we were coming back to get you, but we figured you would tell us. You didn't."

"Look, I was gonna tell you," he exhaled, "but I had to think it over. She sensed the pain in Maria's heart and told me her sickness is going away, but not really."

"Why can't we just take her to a cardiologist?" Jay asked.

The Ninja gave him a look in disbelief before Lloyd continued on. "Jay, this is a _spiritual heart_ were talking about; the kind that involves emotions, like joy, anger, and, in Maria's case, hope. Her past pain is still weighing her down, and she's still giving herself false hope. If we don't fix it, she'll never unlock her true potential, let alone take on Onryō."

"Lloyd," Zane started, "did you not tell us that long ago, Maria lost her only friend in a town that looked at her as though she was a, forgive me for saying this, a freak?"

"That's settles it!" Kai began cracking his knuckles, a look of anger was on his face. "Let's find the jerks who went to her school, her friend that dumped her, and show 'em what happens when you mess with just one of us."

Lloyd gave him a stern look. "Kai, we're not going to beat up a bunch of bullies to try and help Maria's problem."

"We don't have to beat them up. We'll let Maria rip them apart."

"I don't think she has the guts to do that," said Cole. "She might get queasy and chicken out."

"No, violence isn't the answer," the Green Ninja firmly said. "We have to help her move on from her past. I'm sure that that's what holding her back from her true potential: the pain of her past where everyone made her feel like she was worth nothing."

A sharp scream interrupted the conversation, as the girls ran to the guys, fear on their face. "Something's crawling up the side of the ship!" Maria shrieked.

"What're you talking about?" Jay asked. He looked to where the other Ninja were and let out a small scream himself as a pair were latching onto the deck.

They all got ready to fight, but their jaws dropped at the sight of who was really pulling himself onboard _Destiny's Bounty 2.0._ "RONIN?!" they asked in unison.

"Hey, guys. Did ya miss me?" Ronin cockily said, hoisting himself over the side of the ship and onto the deck.

"What do you want?" Kai grumpily asked. "We've got a busy day planned, so go steal somewhere else."

Ronin put his hands in surrender as he got in their faces. "Okay, okay, I get the message. You guys don't want me here, but here's the good news: I'm not here for your loot, just your princess."

The Ninja tensed up at this, except for Jay, who dismissed Ronin once more. "Too bad that there's not a princess here, so you can leave!"

Very quickly, Cole gave a light punch to Jay's gut to stop him from saying anymore. As he grabbed his gut, Ronin walked over to Maria and took his hat off in respect. "You know I'm here for you,Your Highness. Since you knighted me that one day, I've been thinking about my position as a knight."

With a nod from Lloyd, Maria tried talking to him. "O-Oh, right you are, Ronin. I did knight you, but I haven't reached out to you since then, so I understand that you want to serve me."

Ronin gave her a look. "No, of course not. I'm here to get my payment."

Maria's eyes widened. "W-Wha….?"

"You see, from what I know, Knights get to live in the castle of the royalty they serve. This means I should be eating on fine food and getting gold and treasures beyond my imagination. So I decided to come by and pick you up so we can head over to your castle, _Princess._ "

This was unprecedented. The Ninja had thought Ronin would be satisfied with just earning a knighthood, but it seemed he knew a thing or two about Knights. But they didn't have anything to give him….well, he could stay on the ship, but that was a last resort they hoped they wouldn't have to resort to.

Zane stepped from the group to try and solve this problem. "Ronin, I'm afraid to inform you that Maria has no kingdom. We are at war with a evil force that destroyed her castle, forcing her to flee and become a Ninja. She cannot give you what you want."

Sweat was dripping and bodies were shaking in nervousness of Ronin's response. Finally, after thinking for a bit, Ronin answered, "That's a deep story, but I still need some kind of reward. I guess I can just move in."

The Ninja were about to protest when Maria said, "You may stay as long as you need to, Sir Ronin."

They slowly turned toward her with their wide, while Ronin just smiled. "Great to hear! My first order of business: find the best room and move in." Just like that, he walked off and left Maria to the angry Ninja.

" _ **Are you nuts!?"**_ Jay screamed. "Ronin may have helped us in the past, but this is now, and I say that he's gonna ruin our lives! And think of which room he'll take…wait, it my room he's after! Ronin, stay away from my stuff!" Jay ran off to his room, ready to protect his precious belongings from the thief's hands.

"Guys, I'm so sorry," Maria apologized as she turned back to them. "Maybe Ronin could help us. Maybe he's a good guy, deep down, but he hides it."

"He wouldn't give us the scroll of airjitzu!" Kai shouted.

"He took the Sword of Sanctuary!" Nya exclaimed.

"He always wants money in return!" Cole finished the argument.

"We don't have a choice," Lloyd said. "We have to keep convincing him that Maria's a princess by letting him stay here. If we don't, he'll might find out about the Hibagon, the hybrids, and any other kind mythical creatures we found, and make money off of them. We can't take that risk."

There was grumbling amongst the group, Maria, however was the only one smiling and hugged Lloyd. "Thank you so much for understanding."

"It's nothing," he chuckled as he ruffled her hair. "Beside, maybe Ronin might be a really good guy."

" **GUUYYYYSSS!"** Jay's voice echoed from below the deck of _The Bounty_. **"Get down here, right now! Ronin's messing up my room!"**

"That is….if Jay doesn't kill him before he proves he's a good guy," Lloyd sighed.

* * *

Lunch had come, giving the Ninja a chance to explain the situation to Sensei and Misako. It didn't bother neither of them, until Ronin slammed the door open and forced himself between Jay and Nya, just for kicks.

"Nice to see you again, old timer," he said with a nod towards Sensei Wu.

"I'm pleased to see you have joined our cause, Ronin." He stopped as he sipped his tea. "The fight against evil has become more dangerous than anything we've dealt with. We appreciate your support."

Ronin just gave a nod for his attention was locked onto Jay and Zane's gems. "Looks like the fine jewelry is spreading. Is this some sort of fashion thing goin' on?"

The two Ninja quickly covered them and tried to come up with an excuse. "It's just…a symbol….of our loyalty to the forces of good," Jay slowly said. "You get them when you proved to be a warrior on the battlefield and show an act of great selflessness."

Ronin just nodded and looked the other way. When Jay locked eyes with Kai, the Fire Ninja mouthed 'How?' To which, Jay replied back, 'I used my power.'

"Lunch is ready, guys!" Maria bursted through the kitchen doors and carried out large pot. Everyone eyed it cautiously as she set it down, the contents inside bubbling and giving off a thick aroma.

"So what did you make for us to….eat, Maria?" Cole asked, terrified of knowing.

"Well, I didn't have enough ingredients to make my garlic mayo tuna casserole, so I went with a simpler recipe. For lunch, I made you guys mashed up deviled eggs with fried tofu chunks. So dig in!"

"I know Lloyd loves your cooking more than any of us, so he gets the first serving!" As he spoke, Cole scooped up almost half of what was in the pot, and placed it on the leader's plate.

Lloyd gave him a quick glare as he felt his stomach churning already. Suddenly, an idea popped in his head, and a sly smile spread across his face. "Well, my day is always brightened by Maria's delicious cooking, but Ronin is our guest, so he should eat it first," he said as he traded plates with him. "So dig in, Ronin."

The thief gulped, slowly scooping up a jiggly bite on his fork. He began whimpering as the substance got closer, when it reached his mouth, his eyes went wide and his mouth dropped. The Ninja were trying so hard not to smile, but it couldn't be helped. Ronin just **had** be scared off by Maria's cooking, and in the best case scenario, end up in the hospital for sometime.

"This…is….the greatest thing I've ever tasted!" Ronin exclaimed, shoveling in more of the food in his mouth.

The Ninja were flabbergasted, Maria, on the other hand, was smiling big. "Really? You like it? You're not lying when you say it's good?"

Ronin chuckled. "Like it? I love it! I gotta get a second serving!"

Maria was smiling big, and as she looked over at the others, they quickly served themselves and began eating. They gave her a supportive chuckles to show her they enjoyed it, which led her to saying, "Since you guys enjoy it so much, I should make more for dinner tonight!" She ran back into the kitchen, leaving the Ninja to have their chuckles break into the soft sobs due to the torture they were yet to receive.

But through it all, Lloyd kept a close eye on Ronin. Something inside him just told him that things were off. Very off.

* * *

Night had fallen and everyone went to rest, except for Lloyd as he was staying up late, reading Maria's book. He observed every page and payed close attention to the new information that was written. Shuddering at some of the fearsome beasts images, he decided to look up information on Onryō's captains. The first page he that had information was of Goryō, that read,

 **Goryō: Ghosts of noble people and warriors that suffered terrible deaths. They live solely for vengeance, which they bring upon those who wronged them, in forms of fires, wars, plagues, famine, and many other natural disasters. Unlike other ghosts, which are said to be destroyed by dousing in water, these ghosts cannot be destroyed. The only way to stop a Goryō is to…..**

"Gosh, darn it!" Lloyd said to himself. "The page got ripped. I gotta tell that girl to take better care of this, the information in here is invaluable." He skipped ahead and found Kitsune's page and began to read.

 **Kitsune: A mischievous demon fox that grows more powerful until it has grown 9 tails. From there, the kitsune can have access to more powerful abilities such as: Possession, fox fire, voice mimicking-**

 **CRASH!**

Lloyd stopped reading and jumped out of bed, while keeping the book tucked under his arm. He creeped over to the door and opened it slowly, only to be joined by the others, as they rubbed the sleep from their eyes.

"What was that crash?" Nya asked with a yawn.

"I sense it came from the kitchen," Zane whispered. "We should take caution, I sense an evil presence."

"Already on it." Jay quickly, yet quietly, ran back in his room and got a pillow for defense.

Kai arched an eyebrow. "Were you planning on inviting the dude to a sleepover?"

"Ha, ha, so funny, _Kai,_ " Jay growled. "It's all I have, I left my nunchucks on deck, okay?"

"Can you two please stop?" Lloyd scolded them. "Just try to be quiet. Now come on!"

The Ninja walked as slowly as possible, being careful not to step on any creaky floorboards and make the slightest sound. They could feel themselves getting closer when a quiet squeal made them jump into fighting positions, fists glowing with their respective elemental powers to attack the intruder. They all groaned when they saw it was only Maria, who was smart enough to cover her mouth to prevent the intruder from finding out they were coming for him.

"Oh, come on, Maria!" Jay whispered yelled at her. "Why'd you shriek?"

"I'm sorry, but it's dark and I stepped on something. It just got me by surprise," she said as she pointed down at her feet.

Kai used his fire to shine a light on the mysterious object, making them all gasp at the sight of it. Ronin's hat laid on the ground, with a few strands of mustard yellow fur, and two huge paw prints; one that underneath, the other on top of the hat itself.

"I know this fur," Cole said as he picked up the clue. "It's Kitsune's! That creepy fox got Ronin!"

"No, he didn't," Lloyd said, making the Ninja turn towards him. "I was reading how kitsune can posses people. Maybe Kitsune is on board but he possessed-"

"What're you guys doing up so late?" a voice yawned behind them. It was none other than Ronin himself that approached them, but he stopped short when he saw his hat. "Oh, you found my hat! I was wondering where it ended up."

After a brief eye signal, the Ninja began slowly cornering him,making him slightly nervous. "Uh, guys, why are you looking at me like that? Cole, why do you look like you're gonna slug someone? Wait…no!"

* * *

"Wake up, Kitsune!" Kai shouted at the tied Ronin. He turned on lamp that blinded him for a second; when the harsh light stopped hurting his eyes, "Ronin" saw how each of the Ninja were towering over him, eyes narrowed at him.

"What're you idiots doing!? Let me go, right now!"

"Shut up, you living hairball!" Jay immediately slapped "Ronin" across the face, a part of the interrogation he highly recommended.

"What'd I do to deserve that!?" the imposter demanded.

"Not talking, huh?" Cole asked, his hands on his hips. "Then I guess we have to take this to the next level. Who wants to go next?"

"I will," Maria said, as she walked up to the fake Ronin and gave him a hard slap on his face.

"Maria, you're supposed to ask a question _before_ you smack him," Nya whispered to her.

"Oh, right." She turned back to the suspect and gave him a hard smack after asking, "What color is Dareth's underwear?"

Everyone gave her a look that ranged from disgusted to very disturbed. Lloyd took in a deep breath. "Maria, how do you…I mean, _why_ would you know something like _that?"_

She shrugged. "What? I like to help him do his laundry."

"Okay, I'll take over," Cole said, pushing her aside. "Alright, where's Ronin, you creep?"

"I'm Ronin, you nut job!" "Ronin" shouted.

"Where is Ronin?" Zane persisted.

" _I'm_ Ronin!"

"WHERE IS RONIN?" Lloyd demanded.

"I AM RONIN! I AM, I AM, I AM!"

"Wow, for a fox demon, Kitsune really knows how to act like he's the real deal," Maria commented.

"Ronin's" face fell. "WHAT?! YOU THINK I'M SOME SORT OF DEMON?!"

"What is the meaning of this?" Sensei's voice asked, making them turn to see him and Misako in the doorway.

"Is everything alright?" Misako asked.

"No. Ronin," Nya pointed at the fake, "is actually Kitsune, or he may be possessed by him!"

"If that is the case, do not let him escape," Wu ordered. "I also am in need of collecting the gems you bear. The scrolls I've read have said that if we are to position them correctly, they may locate the other gems."

Jay, Zane, Kai, and Lloyd wasted no time in giving Sensei their gems. "Thank you, pupils. I will guard them with my life until then. We must focus now on making Kitsune tell the truth behind his actions."

An idea had popped into Maria's head. "Hey, Lloyd? Didn't I lend you my book on mythical creatures? Maybe it has something that can help us to get Kitsune to crack."

Lloyd quickly began flipping through the pages, when he came across a section that made him smile an evil smile, just as he did back at Darkly's. "I know just how to make this guy crack. Mom, get the leftovers from the fridge."

"Alright…." Misako responded unsurely. She came back quickly with a huge pot full of Maria's dish. "I don't see how this will help us."

"The book says that kitsune are carnivores, but they love the taste of fried tofu."

"Ohhh! That explains how he ate so much of Maria's cooking!" Kai exclaimed.

"What wrong with my cooking?" she asked with slight sadness in her voice.

"Nothing, but he ate a lot so…umm…maybe we should focus and discuss this later." Kai turned back to the imposter, looking him straight in the eye. He lit his fist up in flames, and said in a dark tone. "If you don't fess up, Kitsune, then I'll burn your favorite snack to ash."

"I'm telling you, I'm Ronin!" he replied. "But don't take it out on the chow! I beg you!"

"Well, too bad! I'm gonna in three….two…"

"Don't you dare!" Behind him, Sensei tackled Kai to the ground and quickly snatched the pot, slurping every little bit of it up. He stopped and looked up at everyone's faces, before giving a cheeky smile and fainting. In a puff of smoke, Kitsune had appeared above Sensei's body, grinning with the four gems in his mouth.

"Thanks for the food!" Just like that, he vanished in the blink of an eye.

"No, no, no, no!" Jay screamed as he slid over to the spot where the fox demon stood. He fell to his knees and began to softly sob, then he bent over and fell on his face. "We lost the _geeeeemmmmmssss_!" he wailed.

"I can't believe we just stood there like idiots!" Cole shouted as he punched a hole through the pot. "We…lost."

"Pupils," Sensei weakly said. All of them, except Ronin, kneeled to where he laid and tried to listen to what he said. "I saw what Kitsune was thinking while he took over me. Do not morn the loss of the gems, for we have a chance to retrieve them at the time of the second strike."

"The second strike…..you mean the second battle of Chaos?" Misako asked.

"We will know when it happens," Lloyd calmly said. "We may have lost the gems, but we will get them back. Because we still have Maria and other allies out there. Our power isn't in our gems, it's in our friends; that's something Onryō can never match with the power of the gems."

From his comforting words, they all smiled. However, Ronin interrupted them by saying, "Now that we got that cleared up….UNTIE ME ALREADY!"

* * *

 **So Hands of Time English episodes were scheduled to be released on March 25** **th** **, but I've been hearing rumors that they will release on March 13** **th** **, so if that happens Maria's birthday chapters will still be posted as scheduled, then HoT chapters. Hope you don't mind.**

 **Also, here's the top three villains so far! Harionago has 69 votes, Kitsune has 80 votes, and Goryō has 90 votes! There's still time to vote, so hurry if you have a villain that you want to see finalized art of!**

 **Until then, God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good.**


	32. 31: Promises And Memories

**Disclaimer: Ninjago: not mine. OCs and story ideas:MINE!**

 **Here it is, people! Maria's birthday! Also, the voting will end March 31** **st** **, I'll have the art up on April 2** **nd** **. Plus feel free to send Maria some birthday wishes, and I hope you saw the art for this** **one on my tumblr :)**

 **Without further ado….let's go!**

* * *

 **Chapter 31: Promises And Memories**

It was early in the morning when Lloyd had stealthily rushed to the kitchen to see how things were going. To his relief, everything was going according to plan. The other Ninja were admiring Zane's finest work yet; a giant three tiered square cake covered in pink fondant, with piped roses at the corners.

"Wow! You really outdid yourself on this, Zane!" Lloyd said as he approached them, making them turn and smile.

"Morning, Lloyd," Jay waved. "Pretty sweet, huh? But fair warning, we _kinda_ added a _…special_ filling for the cake."

The Green Ninja walked close to the cake and asked, "Let me guess, is it some kind of…cream?"

"NOPE!" Dareth shouted as he popped out from the top of the cake. It was so sudden, that Lloyd let out a short scream. The Ninja doubled over laughing at his scared face, while Dareth was smiling and waved. "So how you been?"

"You put _Dareth_ in a cake? Why?"

"To keep Cole from eating it before anyone else," Jay joked.

"Actually, Maria is a… _special case_ ," Cole started to explain, "she thinks Dareth is some sort of…celebrity. Considering she likes him so much and think he's so amazing, we decided it would make her even happier if he popped out of her cake. Despite the fact that in reality, Dareth is just-"

"The most handsome man in Ninjago, who is great with the ladies and is fortunate enough to have someone like the pink lady admire the ground I walk on? Not to mention my charms, brains, far out hair, ability to play air guitar professionally, but above all, my humbleness that makes me the incredible man Maria looks up to and worships with all her being?" Dareth interrupted.

The Ninja just looked at each other. "Yeah….."

"Anyways!" Nya said loudly to get their minds of that topic. "We decorated the dining room and have all our presents set. Now we just need the birthday girl."

"And who would that be?" Ronin's voice cut in as he walked behind Sensei and Misako.

"I believe my pupils are referring to Maria," Wu said to him. "You were there when they began making plans, Ronin. Do you not remember?"

* * *

 **The other night…..**

After untying the real Ronin, and trying to comfort an upset Jay that kept rubbing his wrist where his gem was while whimpering, Maria had gone back to bed. The others held a quick meeting to try and apologize to Ronin. As they planned, it was going _very_ smoothly.

"And if I ever have to go through something like this again, I'm charging you guys triple what your souls cost!"

"Will you just calm down for a sec?" Kai asked.

"Calm down?! You guys tired me up and kept slapping me!" Ronin yelled.

 **RING RING! RING RING!**

The phone behind them in the bridge rang, making them all glance over at it. Zane was the one who answered it. "Hello? Oh, it's very nice to hear from you again, Ms. Psyche."

Everyone else just exchanged looks as Zane face showed no emotion. He only listened and gave a short nod with a quiet, "mm hm." He finally ended the awkwardness by smiling and saying, "Thank you, I will let them know right away. Good bye."

"What was that about?" Kai asked as Zane hung up.

"Ms. Psyche called to inform us that she's sending a special birthday present for Maria. It should be here in two days."

"Two days?" Jay shouted. "That's the 19th, and her birthday is on that day?"

Zane arched an eyebrow. "I fail to see why this is causing you to be very worried, Jay."

"I believe it is due to Maria not being able to spend it with her mother this year," Sensei answered. "Instead she is spending it with us. And unless I'm mistaken, if we fail to make her feel more welcome here, she might drift farther from unlocking her true potential."

* * *

 **Present time…..**

"So that's why this has to be a success," Lloyd said. "She's still hurting from having a bit of a past, so we need to help her. She's also probably feeling a bit homesick and upset over somethings that we are _not_ to mention to her."

Ronin had an annoyed look on his face. When they had finished explaining, he finally spoke out. "I just wanted to know who the party was for,I didn't ask for her sob story! When this is over, I think I'll just move out of this dramatic place."

Behind him, the Ninja were silently cheering and giving each other high fives. When he turned back to face them, he caught them frozen in awkward positions, making him give them a look. "What are you guys doing?"

"Stretching," Jay quickly answered. To prove his point, he quickly stretched over his side and stood back up. "And four….and breathe. See? Stretching!"

Lloyd quickly broke away from the group. "Anyways, it's almost time. I better wake Maria up or she'll miss out on her own party." Like that, he quickly walked over to her room with a smile on his face.

Everything was going according to plan.

* * *

 _Raining was pouring down from the sky, pounding on the pavement and Maria as she stood. This all felt familiar to her; it felt like she had been here before, but she couldn't quite remember because it was all so vague. Darkness was around her, it was only the silver cold drops of rain that gave her some light._

 _It wasn't until she heard panting coming from behind her. Maria turned and saw a little pink blur rush by her, being chased down by faster blurs. The pink blur tripped and fell in a puddle; all at once, Maria sighed as she understood. It was another memory of her school days, as if she wanted to remember a single one, she'd just have to deal with it again until she woke up._

 _She could remember this particular scene all too well. First, she had made a fool of herself in kindergarten….again. Then, after school, she got chased down by some of the many bullies, three boys and three girls to be exact, and ended up ruining her favorite pair of overalls and her pink shirt, while keeping her favorite purple scarf miraculously clean. It was then she ended up getting attacked again before mama could save her._

 _The leader of the boys stepped out and towered over her as she laid on the ground. "You're weird, Maria! All you ever talk about is creepy things! I thought girls were suppose to like girly things!"_

 _She remembered trying not to cry while she sat up, but staying low under their devilish smiles. "M-my mama told me….it was ok for me to read those stories. I was just trying t-to tell one at show-and-tell…."_

" _Well they're so creepy and freaky and gross!" The leader of the girls pushed here way to the front and looked like she was getting a real kick out of this. "You always ruin story time with your talking! Maybe you like all that freaky stuff because that's what you are: a freak!"_

 _Maria tightened up as the next part was coming up, she could barely watch it again. The part where she got her infamous nicknames that would be known through out the school, and soon, the town._

" _She is freaky! Her last name is so weird! I can't even say it!" a boy shouted._

" _Yeah!" another agreed. " It's ugly! Psyc…uh…..Pysc…."_

" _She's a psycho! Maria Psycho!" the girl leader laughed. "She even looks like one! Her hair, her clothes, and look at her fat lips!"_

 _Maria had covered all her parts that the girl had called out. All the parts her mother always told her that made her beautiful. "M-m-mama told me…..I have pretty hair. She t-t-told me I have…pretty lips…to smile with….."_

" _No, they're ugly! They're so fat and so pink! Like a….like a pig! Yeah, you have pig lips….Piggy Lips!"_

 _It was then Maria hung her head low and finally began crying. All the while, the bullies chanted at her, "Maria is a psycho! She's a freaky girl!"_

" _Aww, are you crying, Piggy Lips?" the girl leader asked with fake sympathy. "I know what makes pigs very happy: mud!"_

 _On cue, they started forming mud balls and quickly threw them at her. She did nothing, but she could only cover her scarf as best as she could. It was she had left….the last thing that made her pretty, just like mama told her._

' _Let me wake up,' Maria thought to herself. 'I've seen this one before, Mama will come in and save me. Do I even have to-'_

" _Hey, meanies!" a voice she was shocked to hear shouted. If she was here…no, had she mixed them up? This wasn't when her mother would save her, it was-_

" _Leave her alone!" Maria whipped around to see a little girl with a side ponytail, a bright green shirt over a dark red long sleeve. A necklace shaped like the number 8 hang around her neck. Her freckled face was angry, but was able to crack a smile as she tackled the bullies down._

" _You're gonna get in trouble!" the boy leader shouted._

" _Yeah, no fighting in school!" the girl leader exclaimed. "We were just having a little fun with the Freak!"_

 _Maria winched at that final nickname; it was the original form of what would be Town Freak. She shook it off and looked back at the girl picking up a hand full of mud, forcefully smothering it on all of the kids faces._

" _She's not a freak, but you guys are a nasty mess no one will ever want to touch. All you guys will be alone because you're so nasty. Now go away!"_

 _The bullies ran off crying, leaving the girl to comfort Maria. She kneeled down and offered her a hand. "Your name is Maria, right? I really liked that story you shared, and I think I wanna call you Ria from now on."_

" _But my name is Maria…" she replied while taking her hand and hosting herself up. "Also, didn't you think my story was weird? The myth didn't scare you? And aren't I ugly?"_

" _Nah!" the girl waved off. "I loved it better than those cheesy princess stories where she always gets saved…it's so boring! Plus, I think you're the prettiest girl in town!"_

 _The girl offered her hand to her and said with a smile. "My daddy calls me C.C. because he's got a boat and I was born at sea, but my real name is Claire." She took Maria's hand and said, "And I think I'll be your friend and protect you from now on."_

* * *

Lloyd continued to shake Maria awake, but from the look on her face, she was having a bit of a nightmare. He kept trying and said to her, "Time to wake up, Maria. We've got a big day ahead of us."

"No!" Maria jolted up, causing her to accidentally head butt Lloyd. They both grabbed their foreheads in pain, Maria being the first to recover. "Lloyd! I'm so sorry, did I hurt you?"

"Well, it wasn't as bad when we first met," he said while standing up. "I need you to get dressed and head to the dining room as soon as possible."

He turned to leave, but hardly took the slightest step as Maria softly said, "Um….Lloyd? I need to ask you something important. But the thing is….will you laugh at me?"

Noticing the look on her face, he sat down in front of her. "Maria, you can ask me anything. We're like brother and sister now, so don't be afraid to ask me, okay? Just spit it out."

She drew her knees to her chest and lowered her head. "Well…I know I'm a bit different, so could you tell me…..what you _really_ think of me?"

Lloyd stopped to think about this, it wasn't long before he thought of the right answer. "Well, I have hard time understanding how you like Dareth so much, since I personally think he's…. _nice._ You have crazy ideas when it comes to your cooking, you don't freak out about like the rest of use when we see a creepy picture in the scrolls, you always switch back and forth from being outgoing to shy. Oh, and sometimes, you follow me around like a lost puppy without me knowing and then you surprise me."

She knew that answer was coming; he thought she was weird….a freak. Her thoughts ended when Lloyd had placed a hand on her head and smiled. "But you know, I wouldn't change a thing about you. If I did you'd just be another person, and there's no fun in that."

He stood up and said, "So, I like you the way you are. Now hurry and get dressed, the others are waiting." Lloyd walked out of the room, leaving her stunned.

* * *

Maria approached the dining room and as she did, she swore she heard whispering. Her suspicions were true as she opened the doors, with the team shouting "Happy birthday, Maria!" Dareth even jumped out of a massive cake with sprinkles in both of his hands, a smile plastered on his face. The dining room was had pink streamers hung on the ceiling, forget me not bouquet was placed in a jar on the table.

All the while, her eyes had widened by just the slightest and she looked confused. Worried by her silence, Nya asked, "It's your birthday, the 19th…..right?"

Maria didn't answer. "Oh, come on!" Jay shouted. "Don't tell me we rushed around, dropped everything from finding the gems to stopping the bad guys who want to kill us, for a party that's on the wrong day!"

The others quickly shushed him as Maria pulled her phone out of her pocket and said, "It is the 19th. I'm sorry, but I didn't except this from you guys. It's just so….much, and we haven't know each other that long."

Misako walked up to her with a smile. "When you became a part of this team, you became a part of this family. In our family, we care for another very much, no matter what."

Maria smiled back. "In that case…thank you all! Thank you all so much! So how about we open some presents and eat some cake?"

"Finally!" Cole exclaimed. He turned back to Dareth and said, "You heard her, get out."

"I'm coming," he said, "besides I have to give her my gift." Dareth hopped out of the cake and pulled out a large flat present out from the table. "Allow me to present the best gift of all!"

"Dareth, I don't wanna be rude, but what makes you think it'll be the best?" Kai asked.

The Brown Ninja put a hand on his hip. "I've seen your gifts, mine's bigger than all of them. Size matters." He handed his gift to Maria and said, "Happy 17th birthday, Pink Lady."

Maria ripped off the brown wrapping paper, immediately her mouth dropped. Dareth's gift was a painting of him, but a more unrealistically muscular and shirtless version of him that was riding his brown dragon while wielding a sword. The team and Ronin had gathered around and took in a sharp breath at the… _creative_ work of art.

"Dareth," Maria slowly said, "this…is…the most beautiful thing I've ever seen! I can hang this up on my ceiling, so you'll be the first thing I see when I wake up and the last thing before I sleep! Won't that be great, Nya?"

The Ninja's mouths dropped as Maria had been praising the gift. When she said that last part, Nya went pale and sarcastically said, "I can't wait to put it up…."

"Okay, our turn!" Jay shoved two box shaped presents wrapped in pink wrapping with a white bow on top into her arms. "These are from me, Kai, Cole, Zane, and Lloyd. But just so we're clear, I'm the one who found it online."

"But it was I who helped you when you didn't know how to order it," Zane butted in.

Cole gave out a chuckle. "You guys did some work, but I'm the one who drove us down to the store to pick it up."

"What're you talking about?" Kai asked. "I came with you and got it back from that crazy old lady that thought it was hers."

"Will you guys stop and let her open it?" Lloyd scolded them. Maria was reached to tear the wrapping away when he whispered, "The whole thing was my idea."

Shaking that off, she ripped it open to find it was an inflatable mattress. The other present was some bedsheets that had a forget me not flower pattern on it. "Guys, this is so thoughtful! Thank you!" she cried while pulling them into a hug.

"My turn," Nya said as she walked up to her with a small box. "Sensei and Misako helped me with this. I wanted the same thing when I lost my parents, so I hope you like it."

Maria opened it and immediately tensed up. Inside was her old picture of her and Claire when they we're young. They had been playing in a field of forget me nots, dirt got them, but they didn't care at all. They were both smiling for the camera when her mom had taken this picture, and Claire was holding onto Maria's arm.

It was that day they promised they would be best friends from that day on. That's what they had written on both of their copies of this picture. That's what the new golden colored framed that surrounded it said. _Ria and C.C., Best Friends._

Tears filling up in her eyes, Maria ran out of the room, while griping the gift so tightly, it made it tempting to break it. Enough to break the picture, to break an already broken promise.

"You know, I bet myself that if she was gonna cry, it would be when she saw Dareth pop out of that cake. It would make _me_ cry. Am I right?" Jay joked, hoping to break the tension.

* * *

Maria stared down at the picture as she continued to cry. The wind blew through her hair and past her face, giving her a slight chill. She just couldn't take it anymore. Claire had promised her she would be with her, but in the end…..she hurt her.

Maybe she was lying when she made that promise. Maybe deep down, Claire had seen her the way other kids did: a freak. A girl who was ugly with fat lips and messy hair, stupid, clumsy, and a complete freak. The Town Freak, Piggy Lips, Maria Psycho, that's who Claire must have seen when they first met, because she didn't hesitate when she had hurt Maria.

She didn't want to feel like this again…..Maria would _never_ feel like this again. Maybe now, she could finally let it all out… A voice in her just kept urging her to let it all-

"Man, you've changed a bit, Ria," a voice chuckled. "Sure you look a just a bit different, but you've just got a certain…presence to you now."

Maria turned around and let out a gasp, there she stood just as she had last seen her. Her freckles had vanished with nougat colored lipstick highlighting her smile instead. A green jacket over a lighter green shirt with a red outline on top, with her favorite 8 shaped necklace to top it off. Her long dark orange hair was pulled in a ponytail, with the exception of two sections that rested just above her shoulders.

"Happy birthday, Ria," she said with a wink.

All Maria could say was, "C-Claire….."

* * *

 **That's right! Cliffhanger! Also, remember temple of airjitzu set, that had a girl people believed would be the new ninja's? That's Claire.**

 **Send in any birthday wish you have for Maria, ask questions, review, and share this story with a friend.**

 **Next chapter on Ninjago:Legend Reborn…..**

 **A Promise Between Friends**

 **Until then, God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good.**


	33. 32: A Promise Between Friends

**Wait so…. I just go? Oh…oh! Hi, it's Maria! I know this might be weird, but Crystallia has her reasons. First off, she got some bad weather on her end which took out the wifi, during this time, she also got really sick. So her mom took her off technology while she was doing my other birthday chapter, which is why it's late. The reason I'm speaking is because….well she kinda lost her voice, but she got better to do this chapter…..except I have to speak….in front of a bunch of people….for a while. O-O**

 **I think I forgot something else….oh, yeah.**

 **Disclaimer: Crystallia doesn't own Ninjago, but she owns this story, the other original villains and heroes, and me. So please don't rip her off, that includes her tumblr art since that's an issue nowadays. Please, I don't wanna see a picture of me on the t-shirt of a grandpa that drools. I'm getting chills from thinking about it…well, I gotta head back to the story.**

 **I love you, bye!**

* * *

 **Chapter 32: A Promise Between Friends**

"Claire…" Maria whispered to herself. She couldn't believe Claire was standing here, of all places. Her mind was filled with a million questions that probably wouldn't be answered in a lifetime. Like, how did she get here, or how did she even get on a flying ship in the first place?

"Come on, Ria," Claire said with a roll of her eyes, "it's been 8 months and you all can say is my name?"

"Why are you here?"

"Your mom sent me as a birthday present." Claire began walking to her, making Maria gulp as to what was to come next. "She got me thinking about all we left behind back in Tranquilville, that one day, and I remembered the promise we made that I broke. Ria, I came to say-"

"Intruder!"

The girls turned to see the Ninja on deck. Dareth had charged at Claire with a supposed intimidating look, but she merely stepped out of the way. When he had fallen to the ground, Claire grabbed his arm and twisted it behind his back. The Ninja had run up to Maria as they were deeply concerned for her safety.

"Maria, did she hurt you?" Lloyd asked.

"I'm fine!" she insisted, while turning her attention to Claire. "Claire, he's my friend, let him go!"

"Claire?" the Ninja asked.

"This chubby dude is your friend?" Claire asked, keeping a tight grip on a struggling Dareth. "I'll admit it, I'm proud you made new buds, but did one of them _really_ have to be a crazy tubby?"

"Just let him go, please." Immediately, Claire released him and walked over to Maria with a smirk on her face. "Thanks for not killing him. Also, he's not a tubby, Dareth has huggable teddy bear figure, just so we're clear."

"Maria, who the heck is this?" Kai asked.

"This," Maria gestured towards Claire, "is Claire. She was my old friend; she's the girl in the picture that Nya gave to me as gift."

"Nice gift, Nya," Jay sarcastically said. "You gave her a present that reminded her of her awful friend that dumped her."

Just like that, Claire had grabbed Jay by the neck while giving him a death glare straight into his eyes and soul. "You're calling me awful?! I've been there for her when real stereotypical jerks picked on her, when the town turned against her, I even used the sailor language my father taught me one time! And you have the nerve to call me an awful friend?!"

"Uh….no," Jay squeaked out, half scared and half stunned by violent behavior. Claire released him and he stood back with the Ninja, whose faces were a mix of fear and stun, as well.

"Guys, I think we need a moment alone," Maria softly said.

"Are you crazy? You want a moment alone with this totally-" Cole stopped as Claire shot a glare at him. "…..totally, nice, kind, sweet lady?" he nervously asked.

"I believe Maria should talk with her friend," Zane commented. "She came all this way; it'd be rude to deny one who traveled so far."

"I agree with Zane," Lloyd said. "Besides, we're finally going to move into the Temple of Airjitzu soon, so we have to figure out who gets what room, where the training area will be. We should start packing and make some plans."

Murmurs of agreement went through the Ninja, as they turned and left the two alone. As soon as they left, Claire's smirk returned as she cheekily asked, "I'm guessing that green one is your new boyfriend, right?"

"C-C-C-Claire!" Maria stammered out, her face turning bright red, making her hide behind her thick locks. "That's gross! Lloyd's, like, my older brother! I wouldn't even think of dating him if he was the last guy in the universe and humanity depended on us to repopulate!"

Claire put her hands in surrender. "Chill, Ria, I was joking. Besides, I have more important things to talk about with you."

Maria fell silent, lowering her head as she wrapped herself in her arms. "Ria," Claire started, "do you remember when we first started high school together? Do remember that first day and those bullies that slammed your head down onto your lunch tray? I remember your face being covered in that mystery meat and those mashed potatoes."

"I'm so happy you remembered every important detail," she sarcastically responded. "I remember it though; I remember every laughing at me, even the teachers. Then they started another Piggy Lips chant and said I was a glutton. I could never…" she stopped and sighed with sadness in her breath, "…I could never stand up to them, so how am I supposed to save possibly a world if I couldn't save myself?"

"Okay, stay on topic, Ria." Claire put an arm on her shoulder, while making eye contact, she said, "You don't remember….you actually forgot you did stand up for yourself."

"I…did?" Maria's eyes went wide.

"Heck yeah! Everyone has limits, but you, you….snapped. You took that chipmunk-voiced, mini skirt wearing, false eyelash-wearing Olivia Thane by her 'perfect, gorgeous manageable hair' and slammed her down on my tray, staining her outfit and reputation forever! AHAHAHA!"

"I DID?" Maria asked again. "But I don't remember doing… _that!_ Even if I did, you protected me like you did back in kindergarten! You protected me every day until-" Maria caught herself and Claire as she was about to say it.

Claire had protected Maria every day of their lives, that is, until she got jumped. Maria could remember how she had started to get a bloody nose. She could perfectly recall Claire's jeans ripped up, her ponytail gone as her hair was down and covered most of her wounds. The worst part was how Maria could remember Claire's eyes.

Ever since Maria had gone into the town and school, everyone's eyes were wicked. They were full of disgust, pride, fear, that all became aimed at her. It was then she realized that, other than her mother, there were other people out there who had comfort and kindness in there eyes. Claire had eyes just like her mom when she first helped her out; and, from that moment, Claire always looked at her with comfort and kindness.

Then that day came.

Maria remembered getting that sickening feeling of fear in her gut as Claire had grabbed her. The goodness in her eyes had died, as rage was spreading through her friend, her last sanctuary in life. It all became clear that Claire hadn't broken her promise, it was Maria. Because she stood perfectly safe, hiding in Claire's shadow.

"I'm so sorry!" Maria cried, burying her face in her hands. "If I hadn't been so forgetful and remembered when I stood up for myself, then I could've helped you! I could've been better and we could've kept our promise!"

"Ria-" Claire started to say, gently.

"I'm the one who broke our promise, our dream to go to the city together because I stood there! I came alone, but I don't know what I want or what to do because everyone cut off my choices when I lived back there in that, that… narrow minded, gossiping town for jerks! When I joined the Ninja, they gave me some choice, but I'm too scared to accidentally make a wrong choice unless someone can tell me what to do! Why did you even become friends with someone like me in the first place?!"

"Because you're you."

Maria looked up to see Claire smiling, her eyes welling up with tears as well. "You gave me hope that not everyone was narrow minded and never became anything other than a bunch of stereotypical jerks, because you're you. You gave me the best years of my life back in school- working together, eating at the soda fountain or diner, or running around in the grove and fields you lived in- because you're you. When I yelled at you when I was so upset in myself because I didn't make you stronger; I sailed away and kept running away from my own fears and regrets, but you were on my mind the whole time, you were the only thing that really convinced to come back and apologize…."

Claire quickly pulled Maria into hug as she whispered into her hair, "…because you're you."

They finally let it out, hugging each other tightly. Maria cried into Claire's shoulder, "I promise to love you, C.C.! That's a promise from me to the greatest friend I could ever have!"

"I promise, too!" Claire shouted. "I promise to keep our dream alive! I'm never going to leave you alone forever! Ria!"

"C.C.!"

* * *

The Ninja, Sensei Wu, Misako, Ronin and Dareth were gathered in the kitchen, waiting for Maria to return. True to his word, Lloyd had the crew looking at a layout of the Temple they recorded to figure out where each person would be staying. He wrote down who would be where for each room as he spoke. "So Kai will be here, and Nya can stay here, while COLE…" he said loudly to the Black Ninja, who he knew was trying to sneak a slice of cake.

"Yes?" he nervously, trying to hide the fact he had almost grabbed a chunk out of the cake.

"Cole, you're going to be here," Lloyd pointed, "but for now, you're going to be **here**. As in, right by me so you don't eat the cake all by yourself."

As Cole walked over to Lloyd, head hung down, Nya asked, "Wait, am I am gonna have my own room again? The layout shows some extra space in this area." She had pointed at a small room towards the kitchen. "Maria could have her own room there."

"I don't see why not," he shrugged. "The only problem is she has a head start to the kitchen, so we're in trouble if she wants to cook something _special_ for us."

"Maybe she'll also get her own bed," Kai said.

"Oh no she won't!" Jay shouted. "We spent our money on an air mattress that cost almost as much as those expensive bed sheets! That woman is sleeping on the floor for the rest of her life!"

"It was just an idea, no need to shriek."

"I wasn't shrieking!" Jay shrieked.

"We must move past this, "Wu calmly said, "we must also focus on how we will unpack. While you went on deck to comfort Maria, Dr. Saunders called and said he wanted the seven of you to help set up a new exhibit."

The Ninja groaned at the thought of this. "Is it necessary for us to help with this?" Zane asked.

"I'm afraid so," Misako replied. "It's fair for all of us; we saved them from the attack on the Day of the Departed, now you must help clean up the mess you made. The only problem is he scheduled you guys to help the same day we move in the Temple."

"Say no more, Misako!" Dareth slung an arm around a surprised Ronin. "Ronin and I will offer our services to you. I just happen to be free that day, Gayle broke our date because of work."

Ronin arched an eyebrow at him. " _She_ broke it off? Are you sure she didn't threaten you with another restraining order if you kept bugging her while she was busy?"

"…..why do you have to hit below the belt, man?"

Before the conversation could continue, the doors opened. Everyone turned to see Maria and Claire in the doorway, smiling and holding hands. "I take it the talk went well?" Lloyd asked.

"Very," Maria said. "We can discuss it later. I think it's time for some cake!"

"FINALLY!" Cole shouted as he jumped up. Overwhelmed with hunger, he ran towards the huge confection, tripping and falling onto the cake. Everyone stared at him as it was dripping off him, they looked back at Maria to see her reaction.

"Uh…you wouldn't mind eating a cake with a Cole sized hole in it, would you?" Nya asked.

Maria smiled. "I don't mind. It's not how I wanted it, but…"she held Claire's hand tighter, "it's perfect."

* * *

 **Deep in the Dying Kingdom….**

In a puff of smoke, Kitsune had teleported himself at the entrance of the throne room. This was so exciting! King Onryō would love him for getting four gems, maybe even boost his rank up! With the gems in his mouth, he fluffed his fur to a presentable state, smoothed his chest fur, and began to walk in to receive his-

"You want to revive Queen Oiwa?!"

Kitsune stopped as he heard Jorōgumo shriek at the top of her lungs. He stayed behind the entrance walls and peeked over to see her in a confrontation with Goryō. Kitsune flinched as he grabbed her by the arm, pinned her against the wall, and pointed his horns at her throat.

"You will be silent!" he whispered in a harsh tone. "The King is resting to conserve his energy, so I am the higher authority as of now! You are to listen to what I say!"

"I don't care!" she whispered back, matching his tone. "Queen Oiwa was cruel, even for us! She's the reason Dominance got it's name, she almost killed us all if we didn't follow through her rebellion, she almost **hurt** Onryō! If it wasn't for you and the Spirit Queen…well, I just don't know what would've happen to us and this world.

"Think of the King, Goryō! He feels strongly about her, and you took part in sealing her away. This is all for _your_ sake!"

Goryō sighed and released her. "I know, Jorōgumo, I know very well what I'm getting myself into. It was an idea, a prophecy that just occurred to me, that maybe….we need her to fulfill our goal of winning Chaos."

"Goryō-"

"That's enough, Jorōgumo," he said firmly to her. "I will rethink it, but I will carry it out as soon as Kitsune returns with the gems."

Kitsune stumbled back, accidentally falling. "Kitsune!" Goryō called out. "I know you're there, come here at once!"

He couldn't let Goryō get these gems, he couldn't let Oiwa return. Quickly, he hid them amongst his tails and walked in to hopefully….no, to **trick** Goryō. "I have unfortunate news about the gems, Goryō," he said with a smooth purr, "it seems the humans have misplaced them."

"Misplaced them?" Goryō asked with annoyance in his voice. "Of course, why did Seraphina ever give such powerful items to such incompetent humans? In that case, we have a mission to carry out."

"Goryō, I will not allow this!" Jorōgumo hissed.

"Not that plan, woman," he dismissed her. "While the humans deal with their normal lives, all five of us captains are to focus primarily on our bases and armies. We've failed in launching Harionago's army in the first battle of Chaos, we lack in resources, and are getting closer Chaos itself."

Kitsune gulped. "When you say that, do you mean…?"

"Yes, Kitsune," Goryō nodded. "True Chaos: The final battle between life and death, spirit and demon, Seraphina and Onryō. As the theory said, only one will will find freedom, but both will find peace. One to rule in peace with all they believe in, while the other…"he grew a wicked grin a certain scene he always dreamed of seeing one day,"….will rest in _pieces._ "

* * *

 **I really hope you guys liked Crystallia's chapter! It gave me goosebumps at the end. So, HoT chapters will be coming soon, but she has spring break this week and not all episodes are on YouTube in a good sound and video quality. She'll try her best!**

 **Also, thank you so much, Ebony Umbreon for the birthday wish! I love you!**

 **Please review, maybe ask questions about the story, and vote before it's too late!**

 **As Crystallia would say: "Until then, God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good."**

 **Bye everybody!**


	34. 33: Inner Demon

**Disclaimer: I don't own Ninjago. I own the characters, story idea, etc, etc, so don't try and steal 'em!**

 **Hey Reborn Readers, my voice is all better and I had a great spring break! This is kinda weird, but here goes. So HoT chapters are slightly delayed due to poor quality videos on YouTube that are hard for me to understand or just aren't in English. To keep this story alive until the official release of the episodes in the U.S., here's a special and exciting arc for you guys!**

 **Now let's go!**

* * *

 **Chapter 33: Inner Demon**

Four of Onryō's captains were gathered at the stone table in the throne room. They spoke as quietly as possible to keep him from waking up. Jorōgumo, as she was the highest ranking captain present, stood at the head of the table and lead the conference.

"I am well aware you three know why I've called us here without Goryō," she said in a serious tone. "He's been speaking of fantastic ideas that he believes can be real and essential in our victory of Chaos. That's why we must eliminate all possible ways of Goryō could use to bring back… _her."_

Harionago let out a soft laugh. "I don't know about these two idiots," she said while gesturing at Kitsune and Gashadokuro, "but I've hidden that machine that I stole in a secure location he would never think. This was after I, of course, brilliantly stole the essences of some plants and smaller spirits, raising my army and base to 80% completion."

"That's nothing!" Kitsune exclaimed. "I was wise and kept my base in better condition before we were sealed away the last time, putting me at top with 85%."

"You two are so full of yourself," Gashadokuro scolded them, "bragging about how your bases and armies are almost at complete health and strength. My own forces are at 90% completion."

"I doubt that," Kitsune scoffed.

"Are you saying I'm lying?"

"I didn't say you were truthing!"

"Enough of this," Jorōgumo said. "We have more important matters to attend to. It's not enough to hide possible objects Goryō could use in releasing her in some shape or form. We must also hide any knowledge that may give clues as to how he could let out-"

"Queen Oiwa."

The four turned to see Goryō at the entrance of the throne room, but he looked slightly different. Now on his face was a long white beard that stuck out from his cloak and a few wrinkles under his eyes. He walked towards the spot where Jorōgumo stood, _his_ spot.

"Queen Oiwa was the topic of this conversation, was it not?" he asked with a smirk as he pushed Jorōgumo out of his rightful place.

"Um, Goryō," Harionago said while trying to contain a laugh, "I think there's something wrong with your face."

"Yeah, you look a million years old, grandpa!" Kitsune, Gashadokuro, and Harionago had broke into laughter. They slammed their fists on the table and struggled to catch their breath.

Fearing the King would wake up, Jorōgumo shot a thick stream of webbing at each of their mouths, silencing them as they tried to rip it off. "It's as I say," she sighed, "silence is golden, but my webbing is white." She turned back to face Goryō, whose face still retained a confident smirk, and had her own expression turn to a more serious one. "Where were you?"

"Exploring," he bluntly said. When she had raised an eyebrow at him, he continued on. "You see, this world in modern times is quite interesting, but it's fascinating how somethings never change. One example would be how exposed and vulnerable the humans are when they slumber, which brings me to my reasons behind my new appearance."

From the folds of his cloak, he pulled out a skull shaped glass bottle. As they caught a glance of the swirling black contents inside, the others gasped and quickly stepped back for their own safety.

"In the name of Onryō, please tell me that's not what I think it is!" the spider demon pleaded.

"It is," Goryō replied. "Essence of Oiwa's power; a small fraction of it, but enough to turn a sick heart evil. I might have needed to use my own power which would age my physical appearance slightly, but I've got the key to our victory."

"You should dispose of it before King Onryō finds out!"

"Oh, I will, but when he finds out…" For a moment, Goryō's eyes flashed green as he thought of his ingenious idea. " Let me just say that King Onryō will be most happy with me."

* * *

Day had come and the Pink Ninja was sleeping in later than she should've. As she had finally woken up and walked up to the vanity she and Nya shared, she let out a gasp. Her skin was pale and her hair was messy….well, messier than normal as her curls were all scruffy, even her pink curl.

"Maria Psyche, you've really got some work to do," she said to herself as she picked up a comb. "First order of business is the hair before I actually consider chopping it all off."

 _"I think it looks great."_

Maria stopped at the sound of the voice that oddly sounded like hers….but at the same time it didn't. She looked around to see where it could've come from. Maybe she said those words, but that would mean that she's either half asleep or going nuts.

" _Hey, Pinkie, try looking this way,"_ it said again.

Maria looked back at her reflection that wasn't really hers anymore. It was a black silhouette that had almond shaped purple eyes, thick eyelashes a deeper shade, and white smile with deep pink lips. It smiled as it showed off its fangs.

Too scared to turn her back on it, Maria summoned a spirit orb in one hand while holding the comb in the other. "Who are you?" she demanded, trying to sound brave. "How are you here?"

" _Relax, I'm your friend, your real friend."_

"What are you talking about?" Maria lowered her weapon and dismissed the orb as a confused look came upon her face. "If you're not gonna hurt me, then fine, but I think you're mistaken. I have real friends."

" _You mean those rainbow colored babysitters?"_ the shadow laughed. _"Look, kid, I'm an….an ability you had once when you were Seraphina. I'm your shadow that acts as your conscious, and I say that those guys are NOT friends if they keep you from having fun."_

It, or she, had a point. Maria was still behind compared to the others, and they hadn't been helping too much by telling her to stay away from the fights. She had finally done spinjitzu; but even still, they have been going somewhat easy on her after all that's been going on.

"Well, they care for me," she replied, "I'm an important part of the team, so I guess they kinda feel obliged to keep me safe. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to help with chores and train." Maria turned and prepared to change into her gi.

The shadow shrugged. _"Ok, I guess you'll just move with your life then, excepting your low status and the secrets they keep from you."_

Maria immediately stopped what she was doing. "What secrets?" she asked, curiosity growing.

" _Oh, you know,"_ the shadow said casually while inspecting her hands, which had three white claws. _"Just some dumb secrets about what makes you weaker or stronger. Like how you have the potential to get anything you want without using your full power, how you could exact revenge on all those bullies that called you names like Piggy Lips, Psycho, Town Freak, dumb stuff like that."_

These next words were some Maria never thought she would ever say in her life, but the opportunity was just too good, she couldn't help by say them with a big smile on her face. "You mean I could cause them the same amount of pain they caused me?"

" _More,"_ the shadow said with a growl. _"We could throw mud balls at them, embarrass them, use them for target practice and so much more! We could even ditch training and those lame chores while we're at it! But we gotta keep the fun police in check before we let loose, got it?"_

 **KNOCK…KNOCK…KNOCK**

"Maria, may I enter?" Lloyd's voice said through the door.

" _Great, the mommy of the group has come to talk,"_ the shadow hissed. _"Kid, you gotta wrap yourself in a blanket and talk with a sick voice. Pretend you're really sick and weak."_

Quickly, Maria did as she was told and opened the door. In her best stuffy nose voice, she said, "Hi dere, Lloyd. Bice bay tobay, isn't it?"

"Uh, yeah," he said while getting a closer look at her. "I came to get you because you missed chore assignments, but you don't look so good. You're pale and…and so is your pink curl!" He held it up for both to see how it was a lighter shade at the end.

"It's nobing, I was out in sun and it burned dis way. I guess I should get my braining done," she said, following up with a hacking cough.

"No way, you're staying in bed. I don't want you to get more sick."

"But I…" she falsely protested.

"No buts," Lloyd scolded her. "Get back in bed and sleep. That's an order." With that said, he turned and walked away.

Maria quickly closed the door, unwrapped herself and began to put her gi on. "You know, I've lied to Lloyd before and felt so guilty about it. I just lied to him a forth time and now I'm about to disobey him again. You know how that makes me feel?"

" _I'm all ears,"_ the shadow said with a smirk.

"It makes me feel so alive!" Maria finished putting on her gi and started to head out the window. She took a gulp when she realized how high up they were from Dareth's dojo, but she shook it off and jumped.

* * *

It was the afternoon when the Ninja had finished training out on the deck on such a hot day. They'd gathered into the living room sipping cold drinks and watching television to unwind. Jay had walked in slurping away at a Popsicle, making everyone give him a short look as he sat down.

"Hang on a sec, isn't that the last fudge pop?" Kai asked.

"It was," he replied while finishing it. "Found it in the back of the freezer and figured no one wanted it or called dibs."

"But if my memory serves correct, I believe Maria was the one who called dibs on it when we bought the box that contained them," Zane thought aloud.

"Well, she didn't call dibs on the one I ate."

"I'm pretty sure she put her name on it and told us all," Cole said.

"Too late now," Jay shrugged.

Deciding it was time to tell them, Lloyd pointed the remote and turned off the tv. Before they could protest, he stood in front of them with a solemn face. Taking a breath, he said, "Before things get crazy again, I need tell you guys something important. You see it's a secret about a girl-"

"You have a girlfriend?!" they shouted at once.

Lloyd felt his face turn red. "N-n-no! It's not that kind of secret! It's a secret about Maria!"

"You sure about the girlfriend thing though?" Kai asked. "We know you're still growing up in the love and dating department, but your not gonna be young forever so-"

"Moving on," the leader said through clenched teeth, "I've been told some things about Maria which would explain why her powers go from control to no control. I've told you she's had a bit of a past, and it's great she made up with Claire, but deep down in her heart, she's probably still hurting and terrified of life. I figure that since she's comfortable with me and opened up to me, she'll unlock her true potential if she's comfortable with you guys."

"Well, I know she's fine with me," Nya said, "I mean, we're roommates. She and I get along nicely. But I'm not sure about you guys." Nya rolled her eyes towards the others.

Cole raised an eyebrow at this. "What are you saying? She loves us! She always comes to me and asks for recipes."

"Yeah, and look where that got us!" Jay pulled out his phone and showed pictures of some of her… _famous_ dishes. "You see that? These demon dishes gave me a stomach ache so bad, it turned out I had to get my stomach pumped in the middle of the night without her finding out to relive the pain! THE PAIN, COLE!"

"Either way, Maria was just trying to be thoughtful," Zane explained. "The other day, she offered to help me in anything that I was doing."

Kai got a confused look on his face. "Didn't that creep you out a little? She did the same thing when I was getting a late night snack. I closed the fridge after I got it and there she was, smiling like she was about to kidnap me."

"She puts others before herself," Sensei said as he walked in the room, gaining the attention. "It's her strength, but also her weakness that could be her down fall."

"Sensei, you don't honestly mean to say it's bad she's so thoughtful all the time?" Nya asked. "It's sorta her instinct to put others first before herself."

"And that is the problem with constantly putting others first; you've taught them and yourself you will always come second."

Sensei Wu's words really struck them. It was clear that that had to be what held her back from holding her true potential. It wasn't how others put her down, what mattered was how she kept putting herself down because that's all she knew.

"Then it's settled," Lloyd said, "we gotta help her move on from everything that's holding her. As soon as she's not sick, we'll get right on it."

"Sick?" Sensei asked confused. "She's not sick. I went by her and Nya's room and it was empty; therefore, I believed she was training or doing chores."

The Ninja stood up in confusion as Cole said, "Hang on, Lloyd said she was sick. Unless….is she _faking?_ "

"She's not faking," Lloyd declared. "Maria's disobeyed me and lied to me before, she wouldn't do it again because she doesn't like how bad it feels to lie. In fact, I'll call her right now to prove she probably left to get medicine or something."

He pulled out his phone and dialed her number. To prove it, he also put her on speaker as she immediately picked up. _"If this is those telemarketers who wanted to sell me something and told me to have a good day, jump off a cliff and don't tell me what to do,"_ her voice snapped.

Everyone's mouth dropped open at what she just said. Was she really unbothered by talking about people this way?

"Maria, it's Lloyd," he said, trying to pretend he didn't hear her say what she did. "I need to talk to you about how you said you weren't sick and-"

" _I'm not telling you anything about anything, you obnoxious wimp. I don't think it's any of your business to know what I'm doing, so go play mommy to someone else, Garmadon!"_

As she hung up, everyone became fearful of the Green Ninja's reaction to that as his face was currently blank. It was a moment before he put his phone away and spoke in his most evil voice he ever spoke in.

"That little girl….is in **BIG** trouble."

* * *

Maria and the shadow were having the time of their lives as they continued to walk down town. Rather, Maria was doing the walking as the shadow was supposedly traveling in the shadows, even though Maria could hear her whenever she had a fun idea. Still, it was a blast as they'd already stolen candy from babies, graffitied the local shops, ate at a few places without paying, and the best part was she got away with it. The shadow had planned everything; Maria just followed her instructions, did the crime, came back as a Ninja that just happened upon the scene to help, and got off scott free.

She quickly stepped in an alley way to talk to the shadow in private where she became visible again. "I gotta admit that this was the best day of my life!" Maria exclaimed. "I should've found you sooner!"

" _Same here,"_ the shadow whispered. _"I missed the 'special times' I had spent with Seraphina, but now I have you."_

"By the way, I should've asked sooner, but do you have a name?"

" _Oiwa."_

Something in Maria changed as she heard that name, she didn't hear it before, yet…it was very familiar. "Oiwa?" she asked herself. "I think…I think when I went to that museum and looked at the new exhibits, there was one about an Onryō named-"

Knowing what she was about to realize, the shadow, Oiwa, went behind her and grabbed her shoulder, giving it a tight squeeze. Maria's face went blank as a shadow fell over her eyes. Her pink curl grew another shade lighter, letting Oiwa know it was working. A wicked grin grew on her face as she released her.

" _What were you saying?"_

"I was saying… Actually, I think I was thinking about how clever you were when Lloyd called me." She suddenly perked up. "Yeah… Yeah, I was!"

"Maria!" the Ninja's voices called out.

"They're coming!" Maria whimpered. "What do we do?"

" _What'd ya think, Pinkie? Run for it!"_

Doing as told, the Pink Ninja ran towards the end of the alley and jumped over the fence. She ran in the shadows, careful not to be seen by any eyes. When she had ran 12 blocks away from them, she let out a sigh of relief just as a pair of strong hands grabbed her by the shoulders and turned her around.

"Sensei?!" she yelped. "But I heard- you weren't- the others- what?!"

He had a stern look on his face as he spoke. "You've been a bad girl, Maria Psyche. You're coming home right now to explain."

Maria gave him a glare as she talked back. "Listen you old geezer, you can't tell me what to do! You're not the boss of me!"

Wu's face became mortified when he heard those words come out of _her_ mouth. Of all people to speak so rudely, he never imagined her to be one. "Very well, if you won't listen to me, then I know of six others whom you might."

She turned to see the others standing behind her, ready to stop her from running away. Jay stepped out from the group and said, "I'll be serious here, kid. If this about the fudge pop, I'm sorry, but you don't have to be a jerk about it!"

"If your gonna talk tough and fail at it, then get back to where you belong: the dump!"

"Hey, don't talk to him that way!" Nya stepped in front of Jay defensively. "We're trying to help you out with whatever's been going on."

A smirk grew on Maria's face. "How could you help? You weren't any help when your parents _abandoned_ _you!"_

Nya let out a gasp and turned away. Kai, enraged by this, wounded up a punch and said, "That's it! No one talks like that to my sister or talks about my parents like that without getting slugged!"

As he threw the punch at her face, she caught it and twisted his arm. The others quickly stepped back; they were surprised and scared at how she caught it effortlessly and flung him across the street. She faced them again with her eyes empty and her smile wicked.

"I guess this means we gotta fight her," Cole assumed.

"No way!" Jay exclaimed. "She's still our friend, even if she's trying to fight us."

As he was distracted, Maria summoned a spirit orb and shot it at him, making him fly back. He sat up dizzily and spoke with a weak tone. "After careful evaluation, I think it's safe to say we have the right to beat her up."

They all charged at her, making her jump and back flip out of the attack. She landed perfectly on her feet and threw a flurry of spirit orbs, which they deflected or dodged. Deep in her mind, she began to see what Oiwa was thinking and used them to stop these annoying Ninja. With all her might, she summoned an orb three times the size of any she summoned before, and chucked it high above their heads.

"Ha! You missed!" Cole taunted.

"Did I say I was aiming for you bozos?" She pointed up to show them how the orb bursted in smaller ones that rained down on them. A cackle escaped her mouth as they struggled harder to avoid the attack and failed. "That right, I was one step ahead of you!"

"Not really!" From behind her, Lloyd had pinned her arms behind her back. "Maria, I don't wanna hurt you, you need to stop this!"

"Let go of me!" she screamed as she struggled. "I'm not gonna let you ruin my day with Oiwa!"

"Oiwa?" Lloyd's eyes suddenly widened, his guard lowered just a bit. "Wait a minute….Maria, don't you remember? Oiwa was a demon! She's evil, and I don't know what she's been telling you, but they're all lies!"

"SHUT UP!" Maria quickly turned and punched Lloyd right in the face.

As he fell, she walked to over to finish him but stopped at the sight of a bruise forming on his cheek. The adrenaline she felt, that good feeling of spreading hurt, it was all gone when she saw the hurt she caused. It made her feel sick, especially as she looked at her other friends who were hurting as well. They were all hurting because of her.

" _What're you doing? You can end this and be free!"_ Oiwa shouted in her mind.

Maria clamped her hands to the sides of her head. "NO! I don't wanna hurt anymore! They've been good to me, taken care of me. I don't want to hurt my friends!"

" _You must! Hurt them in any way you can!"_ Oiwa's thoughts spread though Maria's head even more, but she didn't like these thoughts. They were thoughts on how she could go after all they loved, keep them as slaves, and rule the whole world.

"NO! I don't wanna hurt anyone now! I don't wanna!"

The Ninja and Sensei had recovered from the attack, showing signs of confusion and concernment at what was happening to their fellow member. They tried to slowly approach her, but she kept wrestling with herself and whatever was in her.

"NO! No, no, no, no, **NOOO!"**

With that final shriek, a dark purple lighting bolt came from the sky and struck the struggling Ninja. Smoke erupted from it, and when it was over, Maria had disappeared.

Shaking that off, the others rushed over to their leader. Zane was the first to ask, "Lloyd, are you alright?"

"Fine," he answered.

"But she hit you really hard," Nya said while pointing at his bruise.

"I can handle a bruise," he said while looking to where Maria stood, "but I don't think Maria can handle that Oiwa demon that's in her mind."

"You mean the same Oiwa whose painting we saw back in the museum that Jay thought was a guy?" Cole asked.

"It can't be any other demon."

"You were right about what's gotten into Maria, Lloyd," Sensei said. "But this Oiwa is not in her mind. She's in her heart."

* * *

 **Meanwhile in the Hybrid Village….**

Cliona sat up from where she was mediating as a presence came into the air, an evil one she hoped to never feel again. She opened the door to her hut and, to her dismay, saw bolt of purple lighting strike from the sky and at something far off in the distance. The elder began to shake as she looked back at the picture of her old friend, her Seraphina.

"Oh, Phina," she said to the picture, "she's back. Queen Oiwa is back, and she's done something truly terrible."

* * *

 **Happy Easter, guys!**

 **Next chapter on Ninjago: Legend Reborn….**

 **The Demon Princess**

 **Until then, God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good.**


	35. 34: The Demon Princess

**Disclaimer: Ninjago: not mine. OCs, story idea, art I post on my tumblr: ALL MINE!**

 **Here it is guys! The next chapter in this chilling arc! I'd like to say that my inspiration for this chapter and art was by my favorite youtubers, Derek and Brandon Fietcher. I love their music, and I listened to some of their dark and creepy music, which also gave me ideas for future chapters!**

 **Check them out after you check out this new chapter!**

* * *

 **Chapter 34: The Demon Princess**

The Ninja quickly regrouped back onto _The Bounty_ to recover from the attack while setting course for the Hybrid Village. As they had gathered into the bridge until their arrival, Lloyd had an ice pack upon his cheek where a bruise now was. The others had been searching frantically through every scroll and the book to find more about this "Oiwa."

"Are we there yet?"Cole asked.

"We get there when we get there, Cole," Kai snapped. "Now be quiet and keep looking."

"I've been looking! We've all been looking and there's nothing about the demon that's possessed Maria! Can't we just shoot water at her the next time she attacks?"

"I'm afraid that won't work," Misako said while looking up from Maria's book. "Just as you said earlier, Oiwa is an Onryō. This species of demon live solely on wrath and vengeance that they exact on those who wronged them in their life, in this case, Seraphina. I fear her possession over Maria is a new kind of torture she's using to show her vengeance."

Lloyd looked down and sighed. "This is my fault, I promised to look after her like a big brother. Now she's doomed because of me."

Nya put on arm on his shoulder. "It's not your fault, besides, no one has a perfect sibling. Kai couldn't save me when I got kidnapped, but it worked out in the end and look where we are now."

"Yeah," Jay said, trying to offer support, "I mean, if wasn't for that, then we wouldn't have formed our team and saved your dad and send him off again…never to be seen…again." Jay had trailed off as the others gave him a look to silence him. He tried to fix it by saying, "So…it's all a cause and effect thing that has its ups and downs, you know?"

"I believe Jay is attempting to say that no matter the battle, we will always win together, as a team," said Zane.

The Green Ninja let a small smile form on his lips. "Thanks, but I'm mainly concerned on how we could beat her. I mean, if we hadn't lost the gems, then maybe-"

" **YOU LOST THE GEMS?!"**

An angry voice echoed around them, prompting them to get into their fighting stances. In a puff of smoke, a familiar cloaked figure appeared before them. The Ninja tensed up more as Cliona shouted, "How could you loose the gems at a time like this?"

"Cliona! How are you here? We're supposed to be arriving at the Hybrid Village in-" Nya stopped and looked at the monitor, looked back and deadpanned, "- 35 minutes ago."

"Please, Cliona," Sensei said as he stepped forth, "I believe I am responsible for I was possessed by Kitsune, allowing him to trick my students into handing over the gems."

"You are their teacher, Wu, if I am not mistaken." The elder gave a short bow to Sensei. "We are well met, but you need not fear me punishing your students. It is a grave and serious time now as Queen Oiwa has risen, taking control over the one who can stop her."

The Ninja's mouths dropped.

"HOLD IT!" Jay screamed. "You mean to tell me that Oiwa is a queen, which would possibly make her affiliated with Onryō, and now's she's possessed Maria because she's the only one who can free her?!"

"Pretty sure she is, Jay," Lloyd said before turning to Cliona. "Cliona, I'm not sure you wanted me to tell them, but I kinda told them how Maria's heart is-"

She held a hand up, silencing him. "Say no more; I was in no position to make you keep secrets from your friends." She turned towards the others and continued to speak. "I should've told you all about what really happened during Dominance, but the child's mind and heart were fragile and impure."

"Then tell us now," said Misako.

Cliona sighed before sitting down with her legs crossed and eyes closed. Somehow the room had darkened as she opened her now glowing eyes, her voice echoing. Smoke rose above them as she began to tell of what happened. "It was over 4,000 years ago, an era of imbalance of life, death, and the in between.

"Before there were the seven members of The Knights of Life, there were the seven members of the Dying Kingdom's court: The Council of Death." The smoke twisted and turned, forming the demons they knew, along with a shadowy mass of Onryō and the hideous face of Oiwa.

"Okay, now I think I'm scared of Oiwa," Cole whispered to Jay.

"You may have heard how Oiwa was beaten by her husband," Cliona continued on, "however, you may not know that her husband was the King Onryō you struggle to fight now. Whatever caused such conflict between them was a powerful one for her to turn into an Onryō, but what confused us all was how easily she had forgiven him. But we were wrong."

The smoke twisted and turned again to a more frightening visual: Oiwa holding a sword at the formless Onryō's throat. "Queen Oiwa had been plotting against him all that time during the war, intending to destroy him, Seraphina, and all who stood in her way. She was the dominant one; she had an unmatchable power that grew from the pain and sorrow of others. It was at that moment when death and disintegration that would befall all, Seraphina had concocted a new plan."

Once again, Cliona's smoke changed shape to form Seraphina and the demons, the Council of Death, side by side. "In an alliance with the demons, Seraphina was able to seal Oiwa away with the use of Goryō's power of dark elements and the power of the gems, leading only for that alliance to be broken. Not long after, she sealed Onryō and his forces away, giving up her freedom and most of her power."

The smoke had vanished, light entering the room again. The Ninja's faces showed how they were trying to understand and take this all in. It was quiet enough to hear a pin drop from anywhere on _The Bounty._ Finally, Zane broke the silence and asked, "Based on what you said, if Seraphina could never seal away Oiwa without the use of all seven gems and an alliance formed with the Council of Death, what hope do we have now that Maria is possessed with a fraction of Seraphina's power, and our loss of the gems we once had?"

"Wow, Zane, you are the optimistic one, aren't you?" Jay sarcastically said. "Always pointing out how high our chance of death and failure is!"

"I have a plan. We wait for Oiwa to strike at night, which would be in highly populated area where she could feed off pain from humans, and try to have Maria force Oiwa out," Cliona explained. "I could also find some spells that may stun her or help in saving the child. But I must warn you that Oiwa works fast, so we must get her tonight before she carries out whatever plan she has."

A confused look came upon Lloyd's face. "So all we can do now is…wait?"

Sensing the mixed feelings in him, Wu put a hand on his shoulder in comfort. "Seraphina's people have been waiting for thousands of years for true freedom from Onryō. If all goes well, Maria will only have to wait one night."

Just one night. One night that determined their friend's fate.

* * *

The hour had fallen for Oiwa to walk among the moonlit paths of this strange village that the pesky child called a "city." She couldn't help but admired every store window that reflected her new body's beauty that paled in comparison to her own original look. Still she wore her dark purple dress that had a cut out of an old demon symbol on her stomach, her hair pulled back into a ponytail as she wore a jeweled headband with a matching armlet.

The true vision of a queen was all she could see. Especially as that pesky pink curl had turned white to complete the look and show that any sign of that joke of a reincarnation was gone. Soon, there'd be no one to stop her from being queen. She just had to get rid of those rainbow colored freaks, dump the reincarnate's body and destroy Onryō in doing so.

"My Queen, how majestic you look," a familiar voice said from behind her. One whose name she had cursed even in her still slumber. She faked a smile as she turned to see her old subjects, all five of them, with Goryō looking most pleased at her return. "I am relieved that you found your way her safely, Queen Oiwa," he said before taking her hand and giving it a kiss.

"We are well met, Goryō," she replied. "As for the rest of you," she gave the others a hard stare as she spoke, "if I recall, you four didn't seem too happy to hear of my return. At least, Goryō told me that."

"Way to go, Goryō," Kitsune growled. He quickly changed his tone as he faced Oiwa. "Moving on, we are pleased to have a…higher power that's equal to Onryō present and well."

"I've heard enough," Oiwa snapped. "Save the small talk, while you, Gashadokuro," she spoke while pointing at said demon, "take me to that high building with kids in it."

"'A high building with children?'" Jorōgumo thought aloud. "Oiwa, do you mean that modern version of a hospital? Why would you go there?"

Oiwa let out a dark chuckle. "Fools, you must know that if you can control children, you can control the future of all. Now let me repeat myself: Gashadokuro, take me to this hospital while the four of you prepare my base."

"Yes, Queen Oiwa," they said, Goryō being the only one that meant it with the utmost respect.

The Demon Queen turned to walk in the palm of the skeleton, when she stopped and said, "Harionago, come here."

"Uh….y-yes, Queen Oiwa," she shakily said, fear creeping into her voice. She stood in front of Oiwa, who looked deep into her eyes where a soul once rested, making Harionago shake even more in fear of what she would do. "What do you need?"

Oiwa put a hand on where her uneven hair started. In a soft glow, Harionago's hair returned to its fullness once again. She tried walking away, but Oiwa grabbed her face and whispered softly,"When you see those pesky humans that can posses the gems, bring them to me so I can hurt them where it counts."

"Of course, Queen Oiwa," she replied while quickly running back to catch up with her comrades. Oiwa also turned back and stood in Gashadokuro's palm as he took her to the hospital.

"Are you sure about this, Queen Oiwa?" he asked, trying to reason with her. "Children are just so annoying. They have tantrums, want everything, cry without reason, and some aren't even…. _housebroken."_

Oiwa just gave him a look. "You do realize you just accurately described Kitsune?"

"Well, I really mean to say that they have hospitals with only children, but they have adults watch over them. If they happen to see us, then they'll summon the authorities and we will have some struggle. Why can't we find some healthier kids far, far away, which might take some time to-"

"I've heard enough!" she shouted. "Let me make this clear: I need the pain from humans, and stealing kids whose lives are going downhill will double what I usually reap because the parents will be devastated. As for being seen…." she shot her hand up, from it came a dark orb that shot into the sky. A dark cloud began to grow and shroud the city in darkness, even with all the lights on, it just became a dark, black void for all who saw it.

"…I won't have anything stop me from taking those little children into my _special_ place of enchantment and fun for them."

* * *

 _It was a beautiful day out with the sun shining brightly. Lloyd walked up to the deck and, just as he suspected, found Maria leaning over the edge as she admired the view. As if she heard him, she turned to face him with a smile._

 _Smiling himself, he said, "You're pretty lucky, 'cause I'm gonna watch over you from now on!" He walked towards her and offered his hand. She mimicked his action and walked slowly towards._

 _Suddenly, from the side of the ship, a one eyed oni sprang up, stopping the moment. It hoisted itself on board, and with its mouth open, it lunged at the two._

* * *

"No! No, stop it!"

Lloyd shot up from his bed, panting deep. He looked around for any signs of the oni, only to realize it was just a nightmare. Unable to go back to sleep, he walked out on deck and had a cool breeze hit his face. For a split second, he hoped Maria would be there, ready to turn around and smile just as she did in his nightmare.

He leaned over the edge and sighed. "You're loosing it, Lloyd," he told himself. "Pretty soon, you'll be hearing the voices in your head, seeing things that aren't there, and next thing you know, you're officially crazier than Jay."

"Especially if you're talking to yourself at night."

Lloyd turned his head to see Kai, but quickly turned it back. He didn't feel like talking to anybody, or maybe he just didn't know how to talk to anyone about this. He couldn't be sure, it was just too much for him to take in one day.

"So, you're up pretty late," the Red Ninja commented as he looked over the edge with him, "I know we have to get ready to find Oiwa soon, but it's still too late to be up."

"Kai," Lloyd said, "what was it like when I was possessed?"

Kai arched an eyebrow. "No offense, but I think you would know since you were the one that was possessed. I was just one of the targets for Morro when he possessed you. All I remember was me trying to lead, getting my breakfast stolen by a yak that woke me up by licking me, and worst of all, fighting you."

"That's what I meant," the Green ninja clarified. "What were you feeling when I was possessed?"

Kai stood up straight as he thought about it for a moment. He then answered, "I was mad, scared, upset, and terrified through the whole thing. I made a promise to you, but all I could do was run away and that made us both suffer more. I just wanted to punch Morro so bad, but no one listened when I tried to lead; I wanted to help and reach out to you, but you weren't there most of the time."

"Great," Lloyd said, "now I know I'm in for a hard time, too."

"What'd ya mean?"

"Well, since Maria's opened up to me about her past, I feel like I connected with her better. Then there's times when she does something that upsets me, like making another 'delicious dish' and making a mess after I cleaned the kitchen. Or the other day, I was playing a game and she turned it off to watch a documentary and we ended up fighting over the remote like little kids. I wanna yell at her and scold her, but I don't want her to get upset and cry.

"Now this whole possession thing happened, and I'm terrified, but I just want to punch everything! I don't get what's wrong with me! Why am I feeling this way?!"

"Because she's your little sister," Kai answered.

Lloyd let out a soft gasp. "Wh-what did you say?"

"She's like your little sister," he repeated, "you told us that you told her to think of you as a big brother, now you're convinced she's your _actual_ sister. It happened to me, too. Sensei always says that we're brothers and sisters, but after going through some serious things, it's brought us closer together since we understand each others pain. Now we can't help but be there for each other more than ever, that's what happened to me when you got possessed, and it's happening to you now that Maria's possessed."

Lloyd just stared at Kai as he was realizing that that was actually pretty good advice coming from him, and how close he had gotten to Maria. He had only bumped into her when he was on a mission, one thing did lead to another, but he originally thought he could get a new friend out of their meeting. Then the whole reincarnation thing came up and-

That was it; Lloyd was supposed to be close to her than anyone else. He just intended to be her friend, not a big brother, but then….everything changed so quickly. Maria got hurt and fell a bit during her first weeks of training, so he stayed up with her and demonstrated how to do things properly. Maria loved reading the scrolls they had for fun when no one was around, so sometimes he watched her as a spark shined in her eyes only when she was doing that. Maria hadn't spent that much time in the city, and ended up coming to him more than anyone else about what New Ninjago City was like, what it was like to live here where she had more freedom to be herself. To be a girl that couldn't do household tasks, loved mythology, and, overall, stick out as there was never anyone or anything like her.

"Kai, I get now. It all makes-" Lloyd stopped as something flew in his face. He pulled it off and let out a gasp at the sight of Maria's purple scarf.

Before either could say a word, the Ninja and Cliona ran out on deck.

"Children, you must head down there now," she urged as she pointed towards a black void that was forming over the city. "I can feel Oiwa's energy spreading, but be warned that it will be hard to see down there."

"And lucky for us, Cliona gave us the key to success!" Jay held up a piece of yellowed paper with writing in the ancient tongue.

"So you're planning on giving Oiwa a paper cut?" Kai asked.

"It's a exorcism scroll," Nya explained. "The writing will free Maria, we just roll it up and hit her with it."

Lloyd and Kai exchanged looks before Lloyd spoke up. "I'm having concerns of resting Maria's fate on a piece of paper, but.." he stopped as he looked down at her scarf in his hand, "if it'll free my sister, then let's do it."

* * *

"Guys….guys….. Anyone?" Jay loudly asked. The group had flown down on their dragons, but even thought they landed together, they somehow became separated. Luckily, he was the one carrying the scroll, but the bad thing was the others were doomed if they came across Oiwa. Jay relied on the light of his electricity to help him find someone or something that he could light up, like a street light or something bright.

"Ok, Jay, just breathe," he comforted himself. "You once had the gem that represented courage, because deep down, you're brave and unstoppable. And no demon, not even the Demon Queen, is gonna make you loose nerve now."

"Jay..." a voice droned as a strong grip was felt on his shoulder.

Jay shrieked, pulled out the scroll that he tucked next to his nunchucks, and started hitting whatever the arm was connected to. "Get off me, Oiwa! Let me go! _**The power of the paper compels you!"**_

"Jay, it's me, Cole!"

A flame, which turned out to be Kai's, lit up the scene. It was indeed Cole that had grabbed him, and Jay was whacking Cole with his nunchucks.

He pulled back and let out a nervous chuckle. "So….I found you guys!"

"Just have the actual scroll ready," Kai said. He lead them straight downs street where he and Cole were originally walking while glancing over his shoulder as them. "I hope the others are ok. It was weird, we landed together but got separated almost instantly, it's like this place is cursed."

"Kai… Cole…. Jay…" two voices called out.

The three ran and quickly found Nya and Zane, having the five run to each other.

"You're alright," Zane said with relief. "We were worried you lost your way or became a slave."

"Slave? What're you talking about?" Cole asked.

"Zane and I were walking what I think was downtown near the Children's Hospital, and heard this moaning. We looked and saw these kids walking in a line like slaves." Nya shivered, "I can't get that image of seeing those kids like that out of my head."

"You won't have to," a voice said from around them.

"Who's there!?" Kai demanded, as they all got into fighting stances.

"I'm warning you," Jay shouted, "I've got a piece of paper, and I'm not afraid to use it!"

In a blink of an eye, Oiwa stood in front of Jay with a smirk on her face. "Try me," she taunted.

"Get out of my friend, demon!" He gave her a hard whack across her face, but she just stood there unamused. "I said: get out of my friend!" Jay kept whacking her until she grew bored of it, so she took it from him and ripped it into pieces.

"Do you really think that that old hag's tricks and spells will stop me? I'm Queen Oiwa, The Demon Queen and the Queen of Death!"

"And I could care less!" Cole swung a punch at her that she effortlessly caught, and punched him back in the gut. Cole was sent flying back into Zane, the two hitting the ground hard. "Ok, now I kinda care since you're kinda strong."

"I'm not wasting my time on you ignorant humans," she snapped.

"Neither do we, now give us back Maria!" Nya threatened.

Oiwa just held up a hand. "You didn't let me finish. _I'm_ not going to deal with you, but my minions…."

Suddenly, a hand snatched them all up in a tight grip. It was Gashadokuro as he held them above his head, opened his mouth, and dropped them in his ribcage prison. "I'm sorry," he whispered to them, "the other captains and I will free you as soon as we can. This is all Goryō's fault."

"What're you saying to them!?" Oiwa shouted.

"N-nothing, Queen Oiwa."

"Good," she said in almost a purr. "Five down, one more to go."

* * *

Lloyd kept his fist aglow with energy as he wandered through the darkness. Everything seemed lifeless since it was so dark. The lights from streetlights and small shops open signs we all gone, it was just him.

"Maria?" Lloyd called out. "Are you there? I'm not mad at you for hitting me, I need to talk to you though."

"….Lloyd?" a voice responded, one he hadn't heard in too long.

"Maria, where are you?" he asked while running to the source. He didn't search far as he found Maria, or Oiwa, sitting on the ground with her hands clamped to the sides of her head. He tried to put a hand on her shoulder, but she whipped around and revealed her demonic form to him herself.

With the way her clothes were styled, her hair, pale skin and purple eyes, she really did look like Oiwa as they had seen in Cliona's smoke. Of course she was no where near the revolting ugliness Oiwa was originally, but what did scare him was the pain in her eyes. There was so much of it, but he couldn't tell if it was Maria's or Oiwa's.

Taking a chance, he pulled out the scarf he tucked way in his pockets and showed it to her. "Do you remember this, Maria?"

"My..scarf," she said while standing up. "Mama made that for me from my old baby blanket. It's all I have of my papa since he's the one who made that blanket." Her voice cracked on that last sentence, she looked back at Lloyd with damp eyes.

"Lloyd, I wanna go home," she pleaded.

"We will," he said while offering the scarf and his hand. "Just relax, we'll go home and work this thing out, ok?"

She looked a little unsure, but slowly reached for his hand. Darkness flashed in her eyes and she grabbed him by the throat. Lloyd struggled to free himself without hurting her, but she had already given his shoulder a tight squeeze. He suddenly felt dizzy and light headed; no sooner did he pass out, his eyes closed on the view of Oiwa giving him an evil grin.

"Sleep tight, big brother," Oiwa mocked.

* * *

 **Next chapter on Ninjago: Legend Reborn…**

 **Children Of The Night**

 **Until then, God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good.**


	36. 35: Darkness In A Pure Heart

**Disclaimer: Ninjago doesn't belong to me. I own the OCs, story idea, and tumblr art I post.**

 **Sorry this is late guys. But I got to meet firstfandomfangirl in person! Also, I did have a few things to do, school especially with our big final end of the year projects coming up so everything is crammed. Hopefully this chapter will further express my apology. I worked really hard on this and the art I put on my tumblr, so it sorta made sense why this took long, plus it's a special chapter!**

 **I dealt with my first case of writers block! It hit really hard because this is one of my longest chapters so far, until I do the final battle chapter. (;**

 **Now let's dive on in! (Also, I changed the title to fit a bit more with the plot in this chapter.)**

* * *

 **Chapter 35: Darkness In A Pure Heart**

"Are we dead?" were the first words Jay, Kai, Zane, and Lloyd heard as they woke up. Each had felt they bumped their heads really hard at one point. Now they were waking up to find themselves in a field of lush greens with a spotting of flowers and herbs. They were under the shade of a great tree as they awoke.

"Are we dead?" Jay repeated as they stood up. "If we are, I'm gonna hate being here until I see some technology."

"Why are we here? Last I remember, we were kidnapped and everything was going down hill because of that crazy-" Kai stopped short as he noticed a familiar piece of jewelry upon his upper arm.

"My gem! Guys, I got it back!" he exclaimed while showing it to his teammates. They quickly examined themselves and found their own gems in their respective places.

"Finally!" Jay shouted. "I missed it so much!"

"This is perfect," said Lloyd, "now we might have a chance against Oiwa. Now we have to get out of here and save Maria, ASAP."

"I'm afraid we can't," Zane said in a shocked tone.

"Why not?" they asked.

"The gems can sometimes give us memories of our past lives, right? Unless I'm mistaken, I think we are experiencing one now, because here we come!" Zane pointed ahead at what he seeing, making the others gasp in awe.

Four young men that resembled them, mostly in terms of their faces, were walking down the slope of the field, led by what looked to be the youngest. Lloyd knew it was Oliver, from his choice of wearing a green jacket, his silver chocker with a green gem, and how he was in front of the group, confidence written all over his face.

The second was a man in red, with a cut in one sleeve. Kai was indeed a spitting image of this man, as the man's, Levi's, hair was more spiked than his, but both shared a similar frown that told people to back off when worn. Proudly he carried a shogun helmet, one that resembled the shogun armor's, under his left arm where a golden armlet and ruby red gem rested.

A third wore clothing that made him look more of a person from a higher class, almost like a prince. Peter had on a gold belt and buttons that popped from the blue dress shirt he wore, almost drawing attention away from his golden bracelet with a blue gem. And by watching every move he made just by walking, Jay couldn't help but think if his hair would look the same if he grew it out.

Lastly was a man who resembled Zane from his earlier times before he became the Titanium Ninja. His hair was combed down more, and his lower face was covered with a white scarf that was firmly pinned over his tunic by a silver brooch with a snowy white gem. Snow…the man gave off a presence just as cold as it with his lifeless but fearful eyes.

"It's them," Lloyd whispered as they passed by them, "our past lives. This _is_ a memory."

"Wait a minute, where's Cole? And my sister?"

"Perhaps they are not here because they have yet to find their gems ," Zane suggested.

Jay completely ignored the conversation as he was in awe. "Woah. I look like a prince! And Kai, you were handsome."

"Thanks, Ja-" Kai stopped as he realized what Jay had said. "Wait. _WERE?!_ I look as handsome now as I did during this time!"

" _Shhh!_ I wanna see this memory. Maybe these guys are here to do an important mission that would help them defeat Onryō and win the second war."

The leader of their past lives, Oliver, stopped the group as he stopped himself and turned back to face them. _"Men, we finally made it after a long journey. You know your orders: document the flora of this field."_

Immediately, they each took a piece of paper and quill out from their pockets, spreading out and beginning their "important mission." Jay's eye was twitching while the others tried not to laugh out loud.

Kai leaned over with a smug look on his face. "So, our past lives had to defeat Onryō by drawing flowers?"

"Oh, shut up," Jay snapped. "Why aren't they doing something useful?"

"Perhaps we should be patient and observe them more," Zane said. "If we are experiencing this memory, then there must be a reason behind it."

" _I'm sick of this!"_ The Ninja turned to see Peter, Jay's past life, throw his hands in the air as he fell back onto the earth. They sat and closely watched the scene unfold. _"Why can't we do something more useful than drawing flowers?"_

" _There's a purpose for this,"_ Zane's past life, Aquilo, calmly replied. _"This was once a battlefield during Dominance. Seraphina told us that ever since that war, she's been planning to observe all the battlefield sights to ensure each was healing."_

" _So why do we have to go out and do this when we should be finding the other gem bearers before Onryō comes and tries to attack us?"_ Peter whined.

Levi had heard enough and turned to Peter with an annoyed look. _"Hey, Pete? Remember that time you kept whining about how hot Forge Mountain was when you guys found me? And how I selflessly used my new power to pick you up and throw you down the mountain headfirst so you wouldn't be hot anymore?"_

" _No,"_ he quickly responded, _"how can I when I'm observing such beautiful flowers? Like…uh…like that one!"_ He pointed from his position on the ground at tiny blue flower.

" _That's a forget-me-not!"_ Oliver gasped as he got down on his knees and crawled to it, his men mimicking him. _"When I was younger, Seraphina told me stories on how forget-me-nots found near graves or battlefields like this are the lost memories of people who died and reincarnated into another being. She said, 'If you ever find even a single, frail flower like the ones in my garden, you must respect it and never step on it. You'll never know when the person who lost it will come back to retrieve it, remembering who they once were and find closure to their confusing new life.' Even the fragrance of them can make you feel certain emotions, the same emotions that are sealed within them that clue you in on what the memory was about."_

"Wow," Kai whispered to Lloyd, "you were quite the leader in your past life. You were mature for your age."

"Well, I think it's a great quality in a leader," Lloyd proudly said. "A good leader must always carry himself with dignity, maturity, and respect so his teammates will follow in example."

" _Guys, I found one!"_ Oliver exclaimed as he caught something from the grass that he now held in his hands. _"This is a rare delicacy that's been proven to support longevity! Now who wants the first taste?"_

With a huge smile on his face, he held up a fat, warty toad.

" _Y-y-y-you want us to eat it_ _ **raw**_ _?!"_ Aquilo shouted.

" _Yeah! The warts are a key factor, and they can be used as a moisturizer if you cook them separately!"_

After a quick exchange of glances, they took off running. Their leader was persistent and chased after them while trying to shove the toad in each of their faces to tempt them to eat it. Oliver was gaining on Levi when he had quickly dodged to the side, making the boy run into the tree. Excluding Lloyd, who was mortified at what he was seeing, the Ninja were cracking up at the scene.

"You know, I can see the resemblance between you two _much_ better now, Lloyd!" Jay laughed as he gave Lloyd a slap on the back.

"We're leaving," he said.

"This really is similar to that time you and your dad were training, and he dodged-"

"We're _leaving,"_ he insisted. "We should be waking up from whatever is going on."

No sooner from when he said that, everything around them became lighter. It all fade before their eyes, but they weren't scared. They slipped into slumber as they would soon wake up for real this time.

* * *

Gashadokuro had fallen asleep and was snoring up a storm as he was tasked with keeping the Ninja under close guard in his ribcage as instructed by Oiwa. Nya and Cole were wide awake just in case she came by and noticed the gems Kitsune had returned to them, which knocked out their teammates into a deep sleep. They didn't have to wait any longer as the four Ninja began to open their eyes.

"You guys are awake," Nya said with a breath of relief. "We were getting worried."

"Hey, bone man, they woke up," Cole said while reaching out and tapping on the his skull.

"I didn't do it!" Gashadokuro stopped and noticed the Ninja were awake. "Oh, you guys are up. Well, this is perfect, Oiwa should be doing her initiations soon. Harionago will give a signal shortly that will tell us the guards are gone from the end of this cave. I will instruct you where to go, so you guys have a clear path to sneak up on the queen."

"What're you talking about? Where are we?" Kai asked. It was hard to tell as it looked like they were in a cave, cold and damp. Gashadokuro was sitting on the ground as his ankles and wrists were chained, limiting his movement.

"We're in Oiwa's base. While you got your beauty sleep, we've been planning the alliance."

"The alliance… Oh, yeah! That's how you defeated Oiwa the first time," Lloyd said. "But what's this about an initiation?"

"Those kids that I saw with Zane, they're getting initiated," Nya explained. "She's going to brainwash them and feed off their pain as she's doing it. If we don't stop her, she'll get too powerful. Lucky for us, we've got four demons on our side."

"Four? I thought there were five demons that were on The Council of Death, excluding Oiwa and Onryō," Zane said. "Did something happen to one them?"

"It's Goryō, he's the reason Oiwa's been let out," Cole explained, anger on his face. "He let out some of her essence- which is just as bad as the real thing since it has some independent thought- because he thinks it'll help them win Chaos, but she doesn't even treat her allies with decency. I mean, look at Gashadokuro, he's chained like a prisoner! That's why we have to stop her."

Jay got an excited look on his face. "Oh, I know where this is going! We just have to get to Oiwa and free Maria by-"

"We're not smacking her with a piece of paper," they all deadpanned.

"Why not?"

"The girl seems to have some effect on Oiwa," the skeleton explained. "Oiwa's powerful and could only be stunned by exorcism spells, never removed. That was that old lady's mistake; however, to fully resist a spell the way she did must mean that something is going on in that girl's heart. To free her might be by getting through to her, it's the only option….but I still have doubts if it'll work."

"Well, we're gonna find that out as soon as we get out of here." Lloyd stepped forward and tried poking his head out to make as much eye contact as he could with Gashadokuro. "Are you sure you can't let us out now? We're wasting time; Maria, those kids, and maybe even Wu, Cliona, and my mom are in danger."

He shrugged his shoulders. "I can't. She could take me down in a heartbeat….if I even had a heart. The point is that she's treats all of us badly, and I'm nothing more than a portable prison for her."

"And you can't stand up to her, even if you tried?"

"Oiwa…" He stopped as sadness fell upon his face. Just for a moment. "Oiwa knows how to hurt us….where it counts."

 **CLANG….CLANG**

 **CLANG….CLANG…CLANG**

 **CLANG….CLANG**

The chime of what sounded like a rusty old bell stopped them from pressing Gashadokuro wth their questions. The skeleton opened his ribcage for them to walk out and look back at him for instructions.

"Here's what you humans must do: At the end of this cave, you'll notice many hallways that can take you to different areas of the base, do not wander from the set path. Jorōgumo marked the walls with a thin, and I mean a _thin webbing_ , forming an arrow to point you where you must go next, so look carefully. She stopped making them in an empty ballroom, the room just below Oiwa's chambers. Take the stairs up and climb out the window and up onto the roof, the highest point of the base, so you can get a whole view of the outside where the initiation will be taking place."

"You heard him, guys," Lloyd said to his team, "it's up to us stop this Demon Queen. Now let's head out!"

* * *

Oiwa kept a close ear as her back was turned on Jorōgumo. The initiation would begin soon and Harionago just vanished to do something. The only one who truly remained loyal to her was Goryō, the same demon who took part in sealing her was so supportive of her and all she did.

She promised herself to remember to repay the favor.

She kept searching through her drawers and pulled out what she needed: an old banner of The Council of Death. Oiwa knew something was going on with all of her "allies." Deep down, they had their own intensions, thoughts of getting rid of her to fulfill their own personal goals.

Oiwa looked back on Jorōgumo with a smile. "Remember this old thing?"

"Yes," Jorōgumo replied, not making eye contact with her.

"Such a pretty banner. Perfect for the initiation; those kids need to see and realize where their lives are going now once they're under my control. I particularly love the symbol woven into it, the demon symbol. Speaking of which, where's yours?"

"I beg your pardon?"

"Your symbol," she tensely said, "the one that shows your loyalty to me and me alone."

Jorōgumo took a deep breath, hiding her worries of where this was headed. "It was removed; King Onryō's orders to ease his grief over you. Your absence affected us greatly, everything changed from that day."

Oiwa just chuckled and handed her the banner. "Hang it up. The moon will rise soon and my new children will be with me, along with all the pain they and their parents have to offer."

She bowed. "Yes, Queen Oiwa," she said before turning to walk out of the chambers.

"My Queen."

"I beg your pardon?" Jorōgumo asked.

"I believe you meant to say, 'Yes, My Queen,'" Oiwa explained. "So say it now, then you may leave."

'Like I'd ever pledge full loyalty to you, traitor!' the spider demon screamed in her head. This demon was no Queen, not after all she had done. She'd always use their own pasts against them when she needed the pain and suffering.

How'd she like to scream in her face that sentence that ran around in her head, that told her brain,to tell her head, to tell her mouth, to let it out. But it was too bold to say to someone so powerful, instead she forced a smile and tried to do as she was told.

"Yes, My….My...My-"

"Oiwa!" Kitsune screamed as he bursted through the doors panting. "There's a situation concerning-"

Oiwa held up a hand to silence him. "How many times have I told you, Kitsune, **THAT WE DO NOT SHOUT OR RUN IN MY BASE?!"**

"I'm sorry, Queen Oiwa," he said in a mumble. "We just had a slight problem with-"

"How am I supposed to hear you when you're whispering!?" she hissed.

"The children broke free of your entrancement! They're waking up and starting to whine and cry and call for their parents! So….we need to start the ceremony soon before they try to ride me or cause a mess."

Oiwa threw her head back and groaned. "I HATE brats. I will head down there and begin early, while you, Jorōgumo, rush down and hang the banner up in the ballroom. And send the guards farther down in the hallways to protect the ceremony from any…disturbances."

"The ballroom?" Jorōgumo asked, fear on her face. How would those humans fulfill their part if they couldn't get close to the Queen? The plan was to go outside where they could attack from the air and be far away from her guards and new minions, _very far away._

"Queen Oiwa, we planned the initiation to be held outside," she said, trying to convince her. "We all worked hard to clean up the courtyard, and tonight will be a full moon, further enhancing the beauty of this event. I would like to list a few more reasons as to why we should continue with the original plans and-"

" **ENOUGH!"** Oiwa screamed. The volume of it shook the room slightly. Kitsune ducked down with his ears flattened against his skull and his tails between his legs. Jorōgumo had stepped back and gulped at the Queen's rage.

"This day has been a long and tiring one," Oiwa said in a calmer but harsh tone. "I've been dealing with children, rainbow colored fools, and this girl who keeps trying break free of my control, even though I have her helpless. It's making me annoyed, and I want to do bad things when I'm annoyed."

"Like what?" Kitsune asked.

Oiwa gave him a hard glare right in his eyes, a wicked smile spreading on her face. "For instance, it makes want to get new accessories. I've always desired to have a fur coat."

"Well, good luck finding-" the fox demon's eyes widened and his mouth dropped when he realized what she meant when she brought that up. " _Ohhhh._ If I may, can I suggest sticking with non-animal based clothing?" he sheepishly asked.

"Get out," she hissed, her eyes flashing. "Both of you get out and do as I commanded you."

"Yes, Queen Oiwa," they said before darting out of the room.

She chuckled quietly to herself when a quick feeling came darted across her- or actually, the girl's mind- giving her a chill. It was a good chill, it was pleasurable. It was powerful and full of pain and sorrow.

Maybe, just for a bit, she could squeeze out of this cursed body and do the ceremony in her own form.

* * *

"So how _are_ we gonna free Maria?" Jay asked the Green Ninja as they were walking down a dark hallway.

"…I don't know," he replied.

"I recall Gashadokuro said we must get through to her," Zane thought aloud, "maybe we must help remember the times she spent with us that made her happy."

"It's a start, but I think I've got something that'll really help." Lloyd stopped and turned towards the group. He pulled out a familiar purple scarf from the folds of his gi and held it to their faces. "Maria's scarf has more sentimental value to it than we thought, it's all she has left of her dad."

A bittersweet look came upon Kai and Nya's faces. Nya spoke up and said, "It should help. I mean, if I was her, I'd want to remember a dad I barely got to spend anytime with."

"Then you guys should get going!" a familiar nasally voice snapped at them. The sound of running footsteps came towards them, but they didn't get into fighting positions as they already knew who it was as the person skidded to stop when they reached them. "Oiwa's ….begun her initiation …early, it's starting now!" Harionago told them while trying to catch her breath.

The Ninja had shock on their faces. "Well, we'll just hurry up and maybe we can make it in time!" Cole proudly said.

But Harionago stopped his moment as she shook her head. "You can't, she doing it in the ballroom. She'll see you and have you destroyed, along with the Spirit Princess and King Onryō. Don't you see? It's all over, we lost!"

"Oh, this is great!" Jay shouted as he threw his hands in the air. "The kids will be slaves, Maria's gonna die, we're gonna die, and the scary Demon King will die and be replaced by his crazy wife that back stabbed him. There's goes all hope that we'll win, so whoop-dee-doo! Anything else to say other than this hallway is beginning to stink up?"

They all sniffed the air and gaged. It had a thick rotting meat scent that made their stomachs twist and turn. The Ninja held their noses, but Harionago on the other hand had her face fall as she realized what was happening. "I now have something else to tell you: the guards were sent to guard the hallways. And they know you're here."

 **CRASH!**

 **CRACK!**

The floorboards just below the Ninja's feet bursted into splinters as smelly, meaty hands grabbed them and squeezed the air out of them. They tried squirming, wriggling, and shooting blasts of elemental power, but they couldn't see and aim for the creatures face because it had none. It was a beast they had read about a long time ago: a Nuppeppō.

"What….are they…doing?!" Zane shouted as he tried to freeze the one that grabbed him.

"Oiwa uses Nuppeppō as guards because their scent and thick body can suffocate intruders before she deals with them herself," Harionago explained.

"That's nice to hear, but I prefer you help us now and explain later!" Kai exclaimed. "It's like getting buried under a pile of rotten meat, or getting hugged by a big, sweaty guy! Make them stop!"

"Hang on! I'm com-" There was the sound of a punch being thrown, and at Harionago as she fainted on the ground.

Behind her stood Goryō with a smirk on his face before walking to the Ninja, whose heads stuck from the thick folds of fat from the Nuppeppō. "What a delight to see you humans here, but it's rather rude to roam around and snoop," he said in a mocking voice to them. "Did you get lost little humans?"

"Oh, shut it!" Cole snapped. "Why are you so happy? You have a door knocker for a face!"

"Silence!" Goryō had raised his hand a gave a sharp swipe at Cole's face. The Earth Ninja now had scratch on his left cheek and another near his eye, making him almost close it all the way. "You see, when someone's says something that upsets me, I want to make them ugly.

"I used to be beautiful, adored, practically royalty. But now I'm a Goryō, soon I can be a Goryō of all Onryō!"

"This is a load of baloney~" Jay whispered in a singsong voice to Nya.

"I heard that!" the demon shouted as he pointed a finger at him, scratching him in the process. "I _will_ be royalty once again! And if you humans want to say something, then say it now so I can give you my response before I take you to My Queen!" he threatened while cracking his knuckles.

The Ninja gulped and looked down, not making eye contact with him. Goryō chuckled and began to walk away. "I thought so. Now it's off to Queen Oiwa, where you will receive proper punishment after the ceremony-"

"I do."

All eyes were on Lloyd as he bravely said, "I do."

"Then say it, boy," Goryō hissed, his eyes flashing green.

"Just why? Why are you betraying the only person who took you in? The others- Gashadokuro, Kitsune, Harionago, Jorōgumo- they treat Onryō almost like family in a way. Why are you throwing that all away?"

It was dead silent. The other Ninja feared for him, but no amount of struggling could even help themselves. Everyone waited for Goryō to respond, with words or actions, yet he did nothing but stand there like a statue.

Then he began to walk towards them.

He walked right up to Lloyd, kneeled down to get a better look in his eyes while still being higher above him. He grabbed his chin with his clawed hand and forced Lloyd to look up more than he was able to in his trapped state. Goryō's voice was just barely a whisper as he asked a question of his own.

"I have a question for you, boy. Tell me, what do you think I'm going to do to you and your friends?" He laid a claw just below Lloyd's right eye.

"Because whatever it is, I'm going to do much worse than what you could ever conceive."

* * *

"Thought you could get away with such rebellious acts, did you now?" Oiwa angrily asked as she held up Kitsune, Gashadokuro, and Jorōgumo up in her hand, her _real hand,_ before the children that were soon to be her new followers. There was much pain and sorrow in the air, enough for her to form a physical form that was visible to all, but half her original height. Yet she could hold the traitors in one hand as she sat on her throne that was on a platform, looking down on all the weeping children that shivered with fear.

"I believe we can get away with it!" Kitsune proudly exclaimed. "We've formed an alliance with some of the greatest, bravest, and strongest humans we've ever seen in years! They'll defeat you!"

"My Queen," Goryō's silky smooth voice spoke as he entered the scene with three Nuppeppō waddling behind him, "what a pleasure it is to see you capture the unfaithful members that plotted against you. And in your own graceful and elegant form that you've manifested. You'll be happy to know I also captured members of the alliance."

He snapped his fingers, on cue the Nuppeppō dropped the Ninja that had been trapped under their bulky, meaty arms. They stayed on the ground, faces with some scratches, but mostly pale with trauma as they either rocked themselves or just shivered.

"A-are you all right?" Jorōgumo asked with great concern in her tone.

"No!" Jay shouted, followed by a whimper. "It was like being born!"

"I feel so violated and sweaty," Cole shivered.

"Sweaty?!" Kai snapped at him. "Being sweaty is a good feeling! What we experienced was like, getting dumped into a pile of rotting meat!"

"I take back every nice thing I said about these guys," Kitsune deadpanned. "Now snap out of it and help us!"

The Ninja looked up as best as they could at Oiwa. Her new form resembled that of Onryō, a formless shadow with her own personal touches. Long, crazy hair was visible, along with her purple eyes that glared down on them. On her forehead was the demon symbol, but more elegant and somewhat frightening in a way.

"Where's Maria?" Lloyd demanded as he stood up. "So help me, if you did _anything_ to her…."

"Relax, the child is right here." She pulled back the lower half of her shadow body, like a long flowing dress, revealing Maria with her head down as she sat with her legs pulled to her, crying softly. With a long claw, Oiwa reached out and stroked her head. "I got tired of her body, her pain, however, was too good to resist! So I'm keeping her here to fulfill my need of pain and sorrow, but when I get tired of her..."

Lloyd's one good eye widened. Furiously, he marched toward them. "You witch! Maria, we're going home, so come-"

As he reached to take her arm and lead her away from this, she immediately hugged herself tighter and cried harder. "S-s-stay away…please….please don't hurt me," she whimpered out.

"What? No, no, no, I'm not gonna hurt you. Maria-"

"Sorry to break it to you," Oiwa spoke as she pulled the Pink Ninja in closer to her, "but I kind of…broke her."

"What are you talking about, you hag?!" Nya shouted.

A wicked grin came upon Oiwa's face. "I got a bit bored controlling her body and wanted more fun. So I peeked at her most painful memories, and because of her already sick and frail heart, she forced herself to keep thinking of those memories. Now she believes the whole world is out to get her- her past bullies, her friends…then there's the six of you, with you keeping secrets about her."

The Ninja were suddenly lifted off their feet and into the air by what turned out to Oiwa's other hand that snatched them up in the blink of an eye. They struggled once again, but failed as most their energy was used to endure Goryō's attack on them. They were held up just above Maria as she was slowly consumed by shadow.

"Put us down, you crazy lady!" Kai shouted at her.

"Why don't you make me with those fancy gems of yours?" A look came upon her face as an idea went through her head. "In fact, I can let you all go once I have the gems."

"Oh, forget it, I just got it back!" Jay snapped at her. "None of us are gonna give them to you."

Oiwa's eye twitched a little at his statement. "You pest. I never _asked_ for you to give them to me."

A sudden jolt of purple lightning flowed through both of her arms, shocking all who were in contact. They let out a scream, when it was over they panted heavily as though the attack took some energy out of them. The children watched from below, crying hard as their heroes, the great and powerful Ninja, looked weak and worn.

Goryō clapped from where he stood as he approached the Queen. "Marvelous, My Queen! Such beauty and grace! I've never seen anyone attack like the way you do, and with such an evil twinkle in your eyes!"

He leaned on her leg as he let out a false swoon. "Onryō never treated you right; King Onryō was a fool to try and rebuild the relationship you two had. Now, if you may excuse me, My Queen, I'll fetch Harionago from the dungeon and bring her up here for you to shock her."

"You know, Goryō," she sweetly said to stop him from leaving, "my former husband was a fool indeed, thinking I would love him again. And that pesky Seraphina was a fool, too, thinking that she could seal me in my base and make it my new tomb."

"My thoughts exactly, My Queen. The nerve of _them_ to banish you was a crime, one that should be dealt with with the most gruesome punishment, My Queen. My radiant, beautiful, Queen Oiwa." He bowed before her with a grin on his face, a wicked one he planned on hiding until he could finally-

"The problem is, Goryō…" she whispered as her head suddenly appeared above him, "….you were one of _them."_

Another bolt of lightning shot out from her finger, making a direct hit at Goryō. He shook from the attack and promptly fell face down on the ground when it had ended. He didn't move but still uttered a weak breath. Goryō, the proclaimed most powerful of all Goryō, first ranked of Onryō's guard, had fainted.

"About time you took care of him!" All heads turned towards Gashadokuro, as to which he quickly defended his outburst. "Don't look at me like that! We all wanted it and saw it coming!"

"Enough of this!" The anger that went through Oiwa had sent a more powerful jolt of lightning through her arms and shocked her captives. "I can do this all day until those gems fall off and until my 'followers' pay the ultimate price!"

In intervals, she shocked them continuously. More and more power flowing through each shock draining more of their energy. Through pauses, Cole managed to say in a weak voice," Kai….we could…use your…armor..about now…please."

"I've been trying…ever since I got….my gem back," he responded as his voice faded away. "But I think because I've….been away from it….for too long…it won't respond."

It was Nya's turn to try and speak. "J-Jay…can you see…what'll happen next?" Just after, she fainted just as Jay had so suddenly.

One by one, the Ninja and demons went out like a light. Lloyd was the last to pass out, the sight of Maria crying being the last thing he saw before he slipped into unconsciousness.

"….I'm sorry…just stay away," a voice pleaded.

The Ninja opened their eyes, a dark and depressing shade of black surrounding them. The voice continued to plead for them to leave it alone, where ever it was.

"Come on! How many times are we gonna pass out?" Jay complained. "Why can't the universe make up its mind? Are we going to be awake or possibly dead, 'cause I don't really care at this point anymore!"

Nya shushed him. "That voice…it's Maria's. Maybe we've connected with her or something."

"That might be true," Zane agreed. "It's probable that in her distressed state, along with us fainting, we've connected with her mind."

"Oh, get out!" Jay snapped. "She's the Master of Spirit, Zane, not Mind. It's not possible!"

"Maybe…it is possible," Lloyd thought aloud. "The element of spirit can mean many things and can touch on a few areas you wouldn't think it had a connection or potential to do, like energy."

"I'm so sorry…stay away…please," Maria's voice pleaded again.

"Maria! You in here?" Cole asked.

One by they all began calling out for her. It wasn't long before an ominous light shone not too far from them and revealed her as she was last seen, crying with head down and all closed up.

Overjoyed, Lloyd was the first to run over to her. "Maria, you're ok! Don't worry, we'll get out of here and then things will go back-"

"STAY AWAY!" she screamed, shielding herself from him.

Though he was startled by this, he kneeled down to her and spoke in a more comforting tone. "Maria, it's me, Lloyd, your big brother, remember? I'm not gonna hurt you, the others and I want to help you. We want to take you back home, okay?"

She didn't move from her position, yet her crying turned into sniffles, so his words must have reached her. "I'm sorry…I'm so sorry," she whimpered, "I'm sorry I did it."

"What're you talking about?" Nya asked, just as the other Ninja had stood be her side. "Do you feel guilty about something?"

"My..my..my past….my bullies…my town…." Maria said while holding back a sob.

"Oh, I think I get it," Cole whispered to the other Ninja before spreading to her. "Maria, you're a good person, all those jerks from your town are probably having a hard time living while you've got us. You're _way_ better off than those idiots."

"It's like Cole said," Lloyd said while managing to put a hand on her shoulder without her freaking out, " you've got a good life now and you're better off. All those insults and everything they said about you doesn't matter anymore."

"That's not it. I.." she looked up, her eyes becoming visible again. "I wanna hurt them."

Lloyd pulled back. "What?!"

"I always felt something in me, but I didn't know what it was. Then Oiwa took me over and made me realize that I wanted to hurt them, especially since I have powers. I wanna hurt-"

"Oh, shut up, Maria!" Kai shouted.

Lloyd snapped back at him. "Kai!"

"Just hear me out for a sec," he said while leaning down, face to face with her. "Look, I know how it feels to have anger in you that bottles up and makes you think things. But you shouldn't do these things, it'll make you a real freak, a real psycho if you try and hurt them. Maria, it'll make you a monster."

"I'm on board with Kai," Jay agreed. "We pretty much beat up monsters, and I don't wanna fight you because you had some anger issues. You're a good person who shouldn't stoop down to their level."

"I too can't process the idea of where we fight you, Maria. Or how you feel you should carry this anger on with you," said Zane.

"It's like we say in Ninjago, 'the past is the past," Nya said.

"'And the future is the future,'" Lloyd finished. He reached into his gi and pulled out her scarf, which to his surprise was there, and handed it to her. "Maria, the future is in your hands now. You can be the person you want to be, you just have to let go of the pain and move on."

For a moment she just stared at her scarf, knowing what to do with it. She remembered dad made it for her as a blanket, for her. As if he already knew the kind of person she would become and that she wanted to be.

Maybe he knew from the beginning that she was meant to be great.

Finally, she tied it back on to where it belonged on her head, and stood tall. "I understand now, I have to let go," she proudly explained. "My mother is a great person, and I trust her judgment if she chose my dad to be my dad. She knew that he would help support me into being the person I want to be."

She took a deep breath in, allowing her voice to gain strength and volume. "My father and I never met, but he was already proud of me, of who I was to become. But all that means nothing if I don't let go and cause problems because of my past weighing me down and making think these things. So I'm letting go."

A loud shriek echoed around them, snapping them out of that moment. The scene had changed as Oiwa was on her hands, allowing them and the demons to be freed. Harionago had an unconscious Goryō tangled up in her hair as she kept looking up at a new hole in the base.

"Seriously, how come all the good stuff happens when we're passed out!?" Jay shouted.

"YOU!" Oiwa screamed as she pointed at the Ninja. "I thought I could take on Harionago since she foolishly picked the locks of her chains and came down here, but this girl," she now pointed at Maria, who quickly ran over to the Ninja, scarf and all, "this girl now has healthy heart because of you!"

"I don't understand, Oiwa," Maria yelled up to her. "I don't have Seraphina's memories, so I just don't understand why you hate me so much!"

"You…you…did something awful! So awful, I can't remember because it shocked me greatly!"

"Enough of your excuses," Kai said as he stepped forward. "Time to end this!"

 **CRASH!**

From the ceiling an anchor dropped, making yet another hole in it. It was the anchor of the _Bounty_ , as Cliona slid down waving her staff as she held onto the chain.

"Pupils!" Wu's voice called from above, "Fly up here, now!"

Doing as they were told, the summoned their dragons, Maria hopping on with Lloyd, as they flew through the hole and above the _Bounty_. They quickly landed on the deck here Misako and Wu rushed to them.

"Nya, take the wheel, quickly!" Wu commanded as she ran to the bridge. "The rest of should brace for impact."

"What about Cliona, and the children and demons?" Maria asked.

"Cliona is down there now, teleporting them out and making it seem like a nightmare," Misako explained.

"Why didn't you do that for us!?" Jay asked. A staff whacked the back of his head, the staff of Cliona.

"We were right out here for hours!" Cliona sharply replied. "Oiwa had a barrier up that canceled out all powers, rendering me, the gems, and your elemental powers useless! Only Maria's power-as it was once Seraphina's- could counter it and break the barrier!"

"…you didn't have to shout and hit me though."

 **CRASH!**

They turned to see Oiwa crawl out from her small gothic castle of a base. She pulled herself up and flashed her eyes in their direction **.** She pointed as she screamed, " **YOU WILL NOT SEAL ME AWAY AGAIN!"**

"Ok, anyone know how to take her down? The only guy who did once is passed out and a back stabber, we only have four gems, and Maria is probably weak after all she's been through. In other words…WE'RE DOOMED!" Jay had begun to panic.

"Perhaps your elemental power can seal her away once again," Misako suggested.

"But Nya is too busy steering the ship, and what about the gems?" Lloyd asked. "It's too risky to try at a time like this-"

 **CRASH!**

Oiwa began throwing chunks of her base at them, one just scrapping the ship. "On second thought, things couldn't get any worse, so let's just do it. Let's combine our powers and aim for her forehead, that might be the weak spot."

Five of them quickly shot their respective elements in a stream that combined at on point, while Maria struggled to spark up a spirit beam.

"Any time now, Maria!" Kai called over the noise.

"I'm trying, but nothing's coming-" A stream of spirit energy suddenly bursted from her hands, swirling into the elemental stream and gave off a bright light at it reached Oiwa, leaving them with a sound of her scream.

As the light faded into normal, the _Bounty_ finally landed at the bottom her burned out base with piles of fallen stone and towers. Oiwa was defeated.

"Did…we win?" Maria asked as they walked off the ship and observed the scene. "Oiwa's….oh, my head."

Lloyd quickly caught her and let her lean on his shoulder. "We did it. We won, but I think you should be more careful in using a lot of energy like that."

"We won!" Kitsune, Jorōgumo, Gashadokuro, and Harionago, who still had Goryō, climbed out from a pile rock. "We beat that old hag!" the fox demon cheered.

"It was just her essence, if it was the real Oiwa, then-" Jorōgumo stopped as she looked back the Ninja. There was a silence as they observed each other, especially the gems that were miraculously still on them after all they went through. She took a deep breath before she walked over to Lloyd and held out her hand. "We should take a break; Goryō will be put on trial and we need to recover…thank you."

Lloyd took it and shook it. As they began to leave, he called out, "You know, it doesn't have to be this way."

"I'm sorry," she said over her shoulder, "but we can't control Destiny just like anyone else." In a puff of smoke, they vanished.

"So, now what?" Nya asked.

"You must rest," Cliona answered. "Your souls have lost their touch with the gems, a rest and spiritual growth may help restore the bond and powers, but in time."

They groaned at the thought of that while Maria stepped away and walked toward a pile of rubble. She quickly came back with a small forget-me-not, sniffing it softly. A confused look was scrunched up on her face. "Strange…when I smell it, I feel mad at the Seraphina part of me."

Without a word, Lloyd took it, threw it on the ground and crushed it with his foot.

* * *

 **Oiwa is pronounced oi as in oi vey, then wa as in water. I can always help with pronunciation if needed.**

 **Next chapter on Ninjago: Legend Reborn….**

 **The Hands Of Time**

 **Until then, God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good.**


	37. 36: The Hands Of Time

**Disclaimer: I don't own Ninjago, I rightfully own the OCs, the art I post on my tumblr for this story, and the story idea. So don't be a thief and try to steal.**

 **Hey, guys! We're here with the Smith Sibling Saga, the Hands of Time!**

 **(Cue audience cheering and screaming)**

 **I had exams so I had to study, but I passed with flying colors! Now, we're behind schedule so I'll be posting whenever I can, not just on weekends but whenever I have a chapter ready.**

 _ **Legend Reborn**_ **will finish soon after that, so try to stay up to date on the story since summer is a hard time for fanfic. Then we will proceed with the second book in the** _ **Legend**_ **series,** _ **Ninjago: Legend Undone.**_ **That will debut around the same time I first posted this book, which was late August. Be prepared, Reborn Readers!**

 **Now I tweaked the dialogue in these chapters to not only add in Maria and some details that move my story along very slightly, but to also see more of the characters personality and explain their actions more, like how they didn't see Lloyd fit as a Sensei.**

 **It's time, people, for a special intro and for Hands of Time!**

* * *

 **Chapter 36: The Hands Of Time**

 **In the Dying Kingdom...**

"Goryō of King Onryō's guard, first ranked of the Demon King's guard and of all Goryō that ever is or once was…" Jorōgumo stopped and looked back on this scene. All of them were gathered at Onryō's cage, his eyes wide awake as he stared down at the traitor.

The lowering ranking members stood around the stone table, heads bowed and trembling with the thought of what would come next in their minds. But Goryō stood there with a smile, as if he was proud of what he did. Proud of betraying his allies, his King, his fam-

"Proceed, Jorōgumo," said Onryō impatiently.

"Y-yes, My King," she replied, snapping out of her deep thought. "Goryō, you are to be sentenced to be banished to the dungeon and dismissed from your position due to charges of attempted indirect assault of the Demon King using the Spirit Princess, betrayal of the King, unleashing a forsaken and banned power that came from Queen Oiwa's essence, and above all, mutiny. Have you anything to say in your defense?"

"Guilty." His expected answer sent a shock through them. "If it's a crime to try and win this war by being smart and use common sense to fulfill our dreams of victory, then I'm guilty. I'll plead guilty all the way to my grave."

"Now, when you say you're guilty, you're joking, right?" Kitsune asked.

"NOT ANOTHER WORD!" Onryō shouted. "He's condemned himself, now let him suffer!"

Onryō snapped his fingers, and with all his power, summoned the portal to the dungeon that laid below the caverns. Goryō did have a heavy build which gave him some time to face his allies once more,slowly being sucked in. Just as before, he had a proud smile on and a evil glimmer in his eye.

"Know this, fools," he said, "in time, I will return. And I will take down this princess _my way_ , for us."

With that said, he slipped into the portal to his prison. They just stood there after it had closed up abruptly, waiting for their king's orders. Onryō only looked away and a moment of weakness was on his face presumably, but it was his eyes that truly gave it away. "You…may all leave me be and do what you must."

"Um, My King?" Harionago started to ask.

" **Leave me!"** He shouted with more sorrow than anger. "Just….leave me."

The demons left, not daring to look back. They already knew he was shedding a few tears he kept after Oiwa was sealed away. Not a word was said amongst them after that, there was none that could be said to heal the past pain that stirred up once again in them. Nothing could heal a past pain….or past sins.

* * *

 **At about the same time in Ninjago...**

"This ends now, Samukai!" Jay said as he locked his eyes with the fierce Skulkin leader's red eyes. "…nope. Pretending this is the _actual_ Samukai doesn't make cleaning up the museum any more interesting!"

The Blue Ninja nearly flung the mannequin head off his head and on the ground in frustration at their current state. Everything was quiet for the Ninja after recent events, leading them to deal with a long awaited battle: cleaning the museum. "This is so lame! We're Ninja, not janitors!"

"Come on, Jay," Lloyd said as he wheeled past him the Master Chen mannequin on a platform trolley. "We're all kinda responsible for the damage to the museum. After all, if we hadn't had that huge battle on the Day of the Departed, this place would still be in one piece."

"Yeah. And who's fault is that, _Cole?!"_ Jay shouted at the Earth Ninja once again for as long as they've been at the museum.

Cole stopped loading his wheelbarrow with old museum pieces to apologize to the salty Ninja again. "Okay, how many times do I have to say, ' I'm sorry for accidentally unleashing the evil ghostly forces that attacked Ninjago?'"

"How high can you count?" Jay snapped. "Stupid museum people, waiting for us to clean up their things when we've been busy risking our lives."

"Um, Jay," Maria said as she entered the room to grab some more artifacts to fill her wheelbarrow and put away, "if I'm partially to blame for us cleaning up extra than they had originally planned 'cause I got possessed, then I'd like to apologize for it."

It had been a hectic week since the whole possession incident; things changed as Lloyd got more protective with Maria as she had also gotten more power than what she could control. It must've had some effect since she'd also gotten stronger and had more energy. Sensei said it was an awakening of some sort, but it barely scratched the surface of her true potential. Until then, she constantly tried to be as much use as possible.

Jay sighed and shook his head at her apology. "No, it's not your fault. Everything's cool, so let's not talk about that…. _thing…_ ok?"

"Alright," she sighed as she headed out.

"How come you can forgive her just like that, when you keep complaining that I'm responsible for this?" Cole asked as he began to move his wheelbarrow while noticing his hands were glowing a strange orange color.

"Because it's Maria. We get mad at her, she gets upset and Lloyd gets mad at us. Lloyd gets mad at us, Sensei gets mad at us and punishes us. It's common sense, man."

Jay began to notice that something was up with Cole as his wheelbarrow fell to the side, dropping all his stuff. "Are you _still_ not use to your non ghost hands? It's been weeks!" Jay left the room without waiting for an answer.

"I thought I had it down," Cole said to himself as he quickly gathered his stuff back in the wheelbarrow and walked out. He headed to the small gallery where the other Ninja were hard at work.

Nya had cracked her back after setting down a huge crate. "This is exhausting!" she exclaimed while resting her head on the crate. "If I could go back in time, I'd tell Dr. Saunders we were too busy to help."

Zane overheard her as he was pulling the Cryptor mannequin away on trolley. "Nya," he began to lecture, "you may remember the rest of us once time traveled; it can have devastating effects and should not be taken lightly. Certainly not to get out of labor."

"It's just an expression, Zane," she huffed before heading to where Kai was. He stared at a painting of a man and woman, clothed in red and blue respectively. Obviously they were a couple as their arms were wrapped around each other, and they looked happy. But it all felt familiar to her.

"I-I don't believe it," Kai finally said.

"What is that?"

"I think it's a portrait of…our _parents._ "

Nya walked to the painting and looked at the back to find a date of when it was made. She gasped when she did. "Woah, this dates back to when I was like, three years old! Or maybe even younger… I don't know anymore…"

"Surely before they disappeared. We know so little about them, Nya, " her brother said sadly. "I wish we knew more about our own parents."

Nya faced him with a smile. "Father was the Elemental Master of Fire. And Mother," she said as she summoned a water ball, "was the Master of Water."

"But they left us the old blacksmith shop…and little else."

"They left us our _powers,"_ Nya said, proudly.

"Guys, look what I found!" Cole called everyone over to a huge painting. Everyone, but Lloyd, gathered around the portrait with its palette of faded colors. It was of the old monastery, with the former Sensei brothers fighting side by side against a duo of foes they didn't recognize.

"Um, why's Lloyd in this really old painting?" Maria asked.

"That's not Lloyd, it's his dad, Sensei Garmadon," Jay corrected as he walked up and got a better look. "…I _think_ it's Sensei Garmadon."

"It is." Cole heard Lloyd approaching and called over his shoulder. "Lloyd, check it out. It's your dad!"

"And there's Sensei Wu," Kai said as he pointed at the light-haired man of the two brothers.

"He looks so young," Nya commented.

"Look at them!" Lloyd said in awe. "My father and uncle- Ninjago's two greatest Elemental Masters." He stopped as it felt like he couldn't measure up to them. They were powerful; even in a painting, they were higher above him and therefore, casted a shadow he was stuck in. "I wonder if I'll ever live up to their legacy."

Jay broke his deep thought by giving him a slap on the back. "First, Kai and Nya. Now Lloyd. Heh, it's family picture day at the museum!"

"Does anyone recognize this battle?" Cole asked.

Zane answered by stepping forward. "P.I.X.A.L, analyze."

P.I.X.A.L's voice rang out from Zane as she observed every detail that could potentially gives clues to when this painting was made. _"Facial contour mapping of both Sensei Wu and Garmadon indicate this scene takes place 40 years ago, during the Serpentine Wars."_

"The Serpentine Wars? But Ninjago should've been at peace at that time. Who were they fighting?"

Before Coles question was answered, Dr. Saunders walked in with a tray of drinks, looking cheery as ever. "Refreshing time! Hot, sweaty work deserves cool drink!''

"Thanks, Dr. Saunders," Kai said as they all took a cup and began to drink. It had weird taste that they couldn't quite describe.

"Enjoy the pickled beet tea!"

After hearing that, everyone who had taken a sip spat it out in disgust. Cole was quick to "accidentally" drop his drink before he had a taste. "Uh, oops! Sorry, hand…spasm. Yeah, it was a spasm, still getting use to my new hands!"

Jay just shrugged and took a sip, actually enjoying the beverage. Maria enjoyed it as well, her eyes wide with joy. "Dr. Saunders, it's so good! Could you bring us more?"

" **No!"** The other Ninja's sudden outburst made them step back a little. Lloyd quickly tried changing the subject.

"Well, you can't because…um, I'm curious about this painting!" he said while pointing at it.

"Oh, this? Nothing, minor skirmish, no historical significance," the curator quickly answered. "That is why I don't hang it in the main gallery."

"It looks pretty significant to me," Jay said. "I mean, look at it! It's huge!"

"Yes, huge _myth,"_ Saunders insisted, "of folklores."

"Even if it is a myth, who are these two men Sensei Wu and Garmadon are fighting?" Zane pointed at the enemies the young Sensei were fighting. They almost looked liked..twins. "I have no data on them."

Saunders sighed as he set the tray on a box and began to explain. "There is a legend; twin brothers called The Hands of Time."

"The Hands of Time…" To Kai, that name sounded familiar. Almost as if it was important to him specifically.

Dr Saunders continued to explain with an unknown look in his eye. "They could allegedly manipulate time. Speed it up, slow it down, all sorts of things!" Saunders began to laughed,though it sounded kind of..forced.

"See what I mean, manipulate time? A ridiculous fairytale!"

"Well, who's this one?" Nya asked as she pointed at the twin that was positioned higher and had a small mustache.

"Oh, this handsome-looking guy? The legend says his name is Krux," Dr. Saunders said with a hint of pride in his tone.

"And who's the nasty looking guy?" Lloyd asked while pointing at the lower positioned brother with a small goatee.

"In the stories, he's called Acronix. Well, it's almost time for you Ninja to go home. Feel free to finish up and take a look at the other exhibits before I close. Toodle-loo!"

Just as he quickly left the room, the Ninja couldn't help but notice something strange was going on with Dr. Saunders. Okay, he already was a strange man, but it felt like he had a secret, a dark one.

"Geez, sometimes that guy gives me the chills," Cole said aloud.

"Be nice," Lloyd said, "Dr. Saunders is a good man. We shouldn't be judging him behind his back like-" The Green Ninja stopped talking as he noticed they were one Ninja short. "Guys, where's Maria?"

"She probably went to look at the _Legends Lost In Time_ exhibit," Kai shrugged. "The kid's fine, Lloyd. I know she's been through a lot recently, but you don't have to baby her. Let her fall and stand back up on her own."

"I'm not babying her," Lloyd insisted. "I'm just concerned and I'm gonna check on her." Just like that, he quickly left the room.

* * *

Fortunately for Lloyd the exhibit and gallery were close, making his job easier. The doors were ajar and creaked as he walked in. Maria was standing in front of Oiwa's painting, the real Oiwa. He slowly approached her, not wanting to startle her.

"You know, I'm glad we didn't have to fight the real Oiwa," he said awkwardly, trying to make conversation. "It would've been ugly, right?"

She didn't respond at first. When she did, Maria turned around, tears too big for her eyes were overflowing. "Did you say something, Lloyd?"she asked as though she was oblivious to her crying.

"Maria, you're crying!" Lloyd exclaimed. "Are you…?" He stopped, looked back at Oiwa's portrait, and pulled her in for a hug. "I'm so sorry about what happened, I should've been there for you."

"Uhh..what're you talking about?" She was truly confused about this. Finally she felt the cold tears streaming down her face and wiped them away. It confused her even more, she didn't feel the least bit upset about anything.

"Guys! Guys!" Jay shouted as he bursted through the doors. Noticing the scene, his smile fell. "Am I interrupting a comforting moment?"

"We're fine, Jay," Lloyd said as he broke the hug. "Was there something you wanted tell us?"

"It's 6 pm! We're finally done working, so hurry up!" The Blue Ninja ran out of the room cheering with the Pink and Green right behind him. The other Ninja had already reached the doors and finally bursted through them.

"6 pm," Kai exclaimed. "Quitting time!"

What happened next was something they couldn't explain. They were going to fly up to the _Bounty_ which should've taken a minute, but they were already there in the bridge. An alarm went off as they struggled to stay on their feet after that… jump in time.

"W-what just happened?" Lloyd asked. "Time just-"

"Moved forward?" Kai finished, though he questioned the possibility himself.

"Um, weren't we just outside?" Cole asked with a hint of panic in his voice. "When did we get here?"

" _How_ did we get here?" Nya asked.

"My circuits are picking up a strange energy displacement," Zane answered. "There must be a connection."

"There was a displacement alright," Kai said. "It displaced us right in here."

"But how? What is going on?" Lloyd asked.

Jay stood up with his ears covered as he shouted at the top of his lungs. "I don't know, but it's loud!"

"It's just the alarm, Jay!" Maria shouted at him. "It's trying to tell us something, so remain calm!"

Nya and Zane got cracking to find the source of this problem. They pushed button after button, bringing up energy readings that were skyrocketing through the roof. "These energy readings are off the charts. Where is it coming from?" Nya asked Zane.

"I'm trying to pinpoint the location!" The nindroid was clearly struggling under the pressure and loud sound of the alarm and Jay.

"How about pinpointing the location of the off button?!" Jay shouted again. "Theses alarms are giving me a-!"

Kai shut off the alarm with the button that was right next to him and Jay. "Heh,heh," Jay laughed sheepishly, "uh, thank you."

"This is surprising," Zane said to himself while examining the monitor.

Jay was still concerned about his ears and thought the conversation was directed at him. "No, it's not. I've always had sensitive ears."

"I meant, I think I know how we appeared on the _Bounty."_

"How?" Cole asked, all eyes on Zane.

"The displacement we experienced wasn't caused by any normal energy. It was temporal energy."

"Oh, well, temporal energy of course," Jay said, trying to cover up the fact he had no clue it meant time. "Everyone knows that's…powerful stuff."

"You don't what it means, do you, Jay?" Maria asked. "It's okay if you don't."

"Oh, so _you_ know what it means, Little Ms. Smartypants?" the Lightning Ninja snapped.

"Well, think of the word temporary. It means for a certain amount of time, so temporal is similar. The difference is that it means time in general, right?"

"Precisely," Zane replied. "Whatever caused that displacement can warp the very fabric of space-time."

"Which is very powerful," Jay finished unsurely. "…right?"

"Very," the nindroid confirmed. "All the normal rules of existence no longer apply to such a force. This could apply to aging, length of the days, and many other cycles as well."

Jay nudged Maria's shoulder with a smirk on his face. "Told you it was powerful."

"But wait, that means this is more serious than we thought," Maria frowned. "If temporal energy is that powerful, wouldn't whatever caused the displacement be very dangerous?"

"Exactly," Lloyd answered, "which is why we're getting to the bottom of this immediately."

Zane plugged himself in to the monitor to get a visual and exact location for the displacement. The other Ninja got to work on the monitor, not Jay. Finding the displacement would mean more work, couldn't they understand they had enough for one day?

"Okay, yes, there was a _little_ hiccup in time," he said, trying to convince them to stop, "but there's just one thing, maybe they happen all the time and we don't realize it. Like déjà vu. Can we go home now, please?"

Everyone stopped to look at him, making him flustered. "Seriously, we just cleaned up an _entire_ museum, aren't you guys a little tired?"

P.I.X.A.L came on screen as a location was finally pinpointed on the monitor. " _I've located the surge's epicenter."_

"Where P.I.X.A.L?" Zane asked.

She went off screen as a familiar picture took her place. " _The old monastery."_

"The old monastery?" Cole questioned. "That old place is totally burned down. Why would anyone or _anything_ be up there?"

"We should find out," Lloyd said.

"But why?" Jay whined. "Cole's right, there's no reason for anyone to be up there. Zane's probably malfunctioning."

Zane stopped for a moment as he ran a test of himself. "Self diagnostic indicates negative."

Jay gave a quick slap on the back of his titanium head. "How bout now?" he asked, hopefully.

"No," Zane replied. "A hit like that wouldn't even hurt a regular human."

Kai stepped forward. "I agree with Lloyd, we should go. Where there's smoke, there's usually fire."

"And where there's a massive energy displacement, there usually trouble," Nya agreed.

"Well, maybe it's like, you know, a-a harmless, massive energy displacement." Jay let out a nervous chuckled as everyone stared at him again. "Come on, seriously, I'm exhausted! We did our good deed for the day."

"Wait," Lloyd suddenly said as something came across his mind. "Sensei Wu said he was going to the monastery, something about finishing an old fight. He said this was something he should do alone."

Jay just sighed. Hearing that made the situation more serious than before, which meant no backing out of this. "What are you guys waiting for? Stop complaining and get us to the monastery!"

* * *

The _Bounty_ was at high speeds on the way back to their old home for most of the Ninja. A place of memories, frustration, origins, meetings, and many other things long forgotten. Nya slowed the ship down as they hovered over the burnt up place. The other Ninja looked over the railing for any sign of their Sensei.

"Anyone seen Sensei Wu yet?" Lloyd asked his team.

"I only see that guy," Jay said as he pointed a familiar dark cloaked figured.

"But who is he?" Cole asked.

"I don't know. Let's find out," he said while heading over to the anchor, ignoring Lloyd's order to stop. The anchor landed and he walked up to the guy. "Excuse me,I'm looking for someone."

The figure hissed under his breath. "That's no pirate."

"What's he doing?" Lloyd asked the remaining Ninja from the safety of the ship.

"Who do you seek, Ninja?" the man asked.

"Spinjitzu master, bout yay tall, goes by the name of Wu."

"Haven't see him," the figure declared.

"That's odd," Jay said as he pulled out his nunchucks, " 'cause judging by all the slash marks, I think you _have!"_

"He's gonna fight that guy!" Maria exclaimed.

"Jay just pulled his nunchucks," Lloyd shouted to Nya. "Nya, get us down there."

"Not gonna work," she called back. "There's not enough room down there."

"It's just one guy," Cole assured them. "I'm sure Jay can handle…whoever that is." Deep down though, he began to doubt himself and what he just said.

Zane locked onto the figure for P.I.X.A.L to scan. He gasped as she revealed that it was none other than, "Acronix!"

"Acronix?!" Cole asked. "As in, 'Acronix and Krux, the Hands of Time?'"

"From the painting?" Kai added on. "But Dr. Saunders said that battle was a myth."

"Even if it was, that battle was 40 years go. Acronix would be an old man today, like Sensei Wu. That guy down there is young!" Lloyd exclaimed.

"That's impossible! Unless…" Nya's voice drifted off for a second. "…he time traveled?"

It sorta clicked together; the temporal energy displacement, the jump in time they experienced. But where was Krux? How and why would he come here of all places?

"We have to get down there now!" Zane ordered. Nya quickly struggled to get the ship closer to help Jay.

At the battle below, Jay charged at Acronix,swinging his nunchucks as fast as lightning. Acronix was quite agile himself as he blocked or dodged each attack with ease. Jay finally managed to get a hit on him with a strong swing of his weapon, spending Acronix back. But not down.

The Blue Ninja quickly fired a jolt of lightning that the Time Twin reflected with the strange green blade he had on his hand. He tried again but was too late as Acronix had just disappeared into thin air. In that time, Jay was caught off guard and looked for where he had gone. He quickly found him as he had appeared right behind him, smacking him with his blade and into a pile of old, burnt wood.

"A moment ago, I had no quarrel with you," Acronix said as he approached Jay. "I do now."

The Ninja quickly slid down the anchor into battle, as Lloyd called up to them. "Did you see that? It's like-!"

"He jumped forward in time," Kai finished.

"Oh, yeah?" Cole said with his fists glowing again. "Well let's see him jump _this_!" Cole jumped off the chain, shooting a burst of earth, stopping Acronix from getting to Jay. He tried to throw a punch at him in mid air, but Acronix had grabbed him, spun him around and into the other Ninja.

"More Ninja? How curious…" Acronix said, honestly surprised that there were so many.

Jay quickly got beside the others as they stood up and prepared to strike. "Ninja-go!" They all charged at him using their spinjitzu it he used his blade to jump through time again. They collapsed and bumped into each other accidentally, making them fall to the ground.

Acronix appeared to where they previously stood, unharmed. "You only missed me by a few seconds," he said snidely.

Nya sat up groaning. "Sometimes I wish I was still Samurai X instead of a Ninja."

"I feel ya, Nya," Maria chocked out, getting squished under Kai and Zane. "Being a bullied girl in a town whose narrow minded residents hated every bit of you from day one was less painful. Though I think I would've been sent to the therapist at some point, so I choose Ninja."

They quickly got up and put their hoods on. Kai, who felt this burning rage in him that he couldn't explain, stepped forward to face the time traveler. "You're fast, but are you faster than this?" He quickly shot a ball of fire, just as before Acronix dodged by jumping in time. The wood behind where he stood began to burn and spread across the old monastery.

"Elemental Master of Fire," Acronix mused. "I've encountered one of you before."

Kai stopped and gasped. "You…you met my father?" If that was true, did he know what happened to his father and mother? Were they even alive?

There was no time to question Acronix as he warped again, making them search frantically for he would, or _could_ pop up next. It wasn't until Nya pointed upwards at a beam of wood, shouting, "There he is!" that he appeared again.

" _Ninja_ ….come out and play," he said in a creepy, mocking voice, almost like he was putting them in a trance. A crazed look in his eye as he beckoned them.

Loyd quickly took over as leader. "Jay, Cole, Kai, Maria, we get Acronix. Zane, Nya, use your elemental powers to put of this fire."

" _Ninja,"_ Acronix said, more impatiently and aggressively, "come out and play!"

"Hang on, why do you always get to be in charge?" Jay asked. "Why can't I help with the flames?"

Lloyd looked at him as if he was crazy...well, more crazy than usual. "You think lightning is better than water and ice for stopping flames?"

"Good point. Let's go!" Jay ran up as lose as he could to Acronix and shot lightening at him that he quickly ran out of the way of.

Cole quickly hopped onto the beam the Acronix stood on in a fighting position. "You got lucky last time! Try dodging this!" Cole attacked with a high kick, then charged with a punch, but Acronix was fast to dodged both attacks, making Cole miss and get stuck in a piece of wood.

"Clumsy!" Acronix spat at him. "Like a fawn trying to stand on her new legs."

Before he had a chance to strike, Jay, Kai, Lloyd and Maria jumped up and sounded off as they aimed with an elemental blast of their respective elements.

"One!"

"Two!"

"Three!"

"Four!"

Attacking together, they shot their powers at him. He was still able to dodge, but it didn't stop them as they kept attacking him. By now he Acronix could only jump back and forth, getting pushed back bit by bit. Cole freed himself and joined up with them to attack.

"Keep moving him back," Lloyd told them. "He's gonna have to surrender or else the flames will get him."

"Here's Acronix!" he shouted as he managed to get out from where he was cornered. He stood there as if he was waiting, still the five Ninja combined their powers and shot it at him again. This time, however, he held out his blade not to block it, but to absorb it in a way. It glowed brighter and brighter as it took more of the attack's power.

"He's gonna blow!" Kai warned, but it was too late. A burst of temporal energy knocked them down, Acronix was gone.

The monastery continued to burn as the Ninja stirred awake and took of their hoods. "Burned down again," Jay commented. "Man, this place just can not catch a break!"

Lloyd looked around with a glare on his face. "Neither did Acronix."

"Good," Kai said with a breath of relief. "You know me, I don't back down from a challenge. But I wouldn't want to face that guy again."

"No way!" Cole agreed. "He moved at like, the speed of time!"

"But we can take him, right?" Maria asked. "We've literally looked death in the eye and came out on top. We'll find a way to take him out and get back to what we've been busy with."

"Maria's right," Lloyd said. "We can win this fight another day at another time. Let's get back to _Destiny's Bounty."_

"W-wait! What about Sensei Wu?" Nya asked.

Everyone froze. They came for Wu but now that they knew Acronix was here, he must've done something to their Sensei. What if he was injured and couldn't move, especially since they set this place on fire again?"

"We gotta find him! Spread out!" Lloyd ordered.

They quickly looked at in every area of the monastery, Cole being the smart one and looking past all the rubble and debris. He quickly ran down the stone steps where Wu came into view, holding on by a branch that had just snapped. Cole flung himself towards the edge and managed to grab him.

"You…gotta..hold…on!" he told his Sensei as he struggled. The other Ninja stood by him as he pulled Wu back on to the ground. "I barely made it," he told himself as his hands finally stopped glowing.

"Sensei, are you okay?" Zane asked him as he struggled to catch his breath.

"I..fear..not," Wu sad between breaths.

"Why was Acronix here?"

"How did he do that?" Kai asked.

"And why were you fighting him?" Jay added.

"There is much to tell you," he said weakly, "and not much time."

* * *

 **Sorry it took so long, but I will be on it for you guys! So try and keep up to date with the story, especially since we'll be getting more lore, a showdown, two new powers, memories, and secrets revealed after HoT.**

 **Next chapter on Ninjago: Legend Reborn...**

 **The Hatching**

 **Until then, God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good.**


	38. 37: The Hatching

**Disclaimer: Ninjago isn't mine,but everything to the OCs, art I post on my tumblr, etc, is mine!**

 **Hey guys, we're back! Time for another HoT chapter! Sorry for delay, but I would like to say that I've been working on the** _ **Legend Undone**_ **title cover, art reveals of characters, chapter art, and mostly, chapters!**

 **So yeah, I kinda stretched myself a bit with my Fanfic duties, but I have been considering an epilogue/ sneak preview at the second book after the final official chapter of this book is put up! It would be fair since the book might end on a** _ **slight**_ **cliffhanger. Who knows? Wait, I do!**

 **Now let's dive on in!**

* * *

 **Chapter 37: The Hatching**

It had almost been a day since Sensei Wu was attacked by Acronix, and even though he said that there was much to discuss, the Ninja had to wait as soon as they reached the temple. Sure, they needed to rest after an exhausting day, but as they arrived, Misako had told them of how time sorta "skipped ahead." No doubt it was Acronix's temporal energy displacement that proved to reach farther than New Ninjago City in terms of effects.

It was one of the things that kept them up that night; questions that kept swirling in their heads, the thought of how injured Sensei was, and the fact Dareth and Ronin didn't finishing unpacking so they slept on their beds without their sheets that were lost amongst the boxes and boxes of stuff that needed unpacking.

But today Sensei and the Ninja gathered in a room while he was sipping away at healing tea, cup after cup, as though nothing had happened. He kept acting very absentmindedly by looking out the window and just sipping away. After he finished his cup again, he asked Misako once more, "Another cup, please, Misako?"

"Okay, she with a chuckled as she refilled his cup, "but drink it slower this time. Healing tea doesn't work on a burnt tongue." Despite her warning, Wu began to gulp it down again.

"Sip!" she insisted as she began to leave the room. "You're quite impatient."

"They same could be said of them," Sensei Wu said, finally acknowledging his students.

Cole was the first to step from the group. "Ok, Sensei Wu, you've had your tea. Now can we talk?"

"Ask any question you wish." Just as he said that, the Nina fired away their questions spontaneously.

"Who did we fight in the monastery?"

"That was Acronix, right?"

"From the painting?"

"Is he really a myth? *"

"Why didn't you tell us?"

"..or was it Krux?"

"Was he from the future?"

"How did he speed up time like that?"

"Was he from the past?"

"Who ate my pudding cup?!"

The Ninja stopped and stared at Jay as he held up an empty pudding cup, disappointment on his face. "What? He said ask _any_ question," Jay explained. "I put my name on this. Just because we're in a new dojo, doesn't mean we disobey the refrigerator rules!"

The silence and looks he was given gave him the message that his question was a bit irrelevant to the conversation. "Right, sorry," he said, understanding their looks. "Guy in monastery. What's his story?"

"To answer that, I must begin at the end," Wu explained. "It was 40 years ago, shortly after the Serpentine Wars, when I was a much younger man." A distant look appeared in Wu's eyes as he remembered older times. "As you know, we fought valiantly but our enemies were stronger and our powers alone were not enough.

"It was the discovery of the magic flutes that allowed us to defeat the Anacondrai. Their leaders were banished and peace had returned to Ninjago. An alliance that couldn't have been achieved without the elements of smoke, metal, lightning, shadow, fire, water, and time."

"Hold on a sec," Cole interrupted, "so that guy at the monastery is an _actual_ Elemental Master of Time?"

"No," Wu firmly said, "Acronix _was_ a Elemental Master of Time, like his brother Krux." The Sensei stopped to take a sip of healing tea before continuing. "After helping us win our hard fought peace, they betrayed me, Garmadon, and the others. The so called Hands of Time felt as that they controlled the most powerful element; therefore, entitling them to rule all of Ninjago."

"What did you do?" Nya asked.

"We had to stop them, and it would take all of us. Garmadon, myself, and every Elemental Master."

Kai and Nya looked at each other with a bit of hope and sadness in their eyes before Kai asked, "Even…our parents?"

"Of course," Sensei replied. "Kai, Nya, your mother and father were great fighters, but it appeared they had met their match. Acronix was a skilled warrior, one of the best I've ever seen, but his real power was his ability to control the forward movement of time. By sending himself forward in time, he was always ahead of the action, as if he had super speed."

"So, in our fight yesterday, Acronix was just sending himself forward in time to beat us?" Maria asked.

Sensei nodded. "Indeed, his power was not to be doubted; however, a slow progression can be just as effective. Different power but equally effective. One Master of Time was bad enough, but like the hands on a clock, there were two."

"Acronix and Krux," Zane thought aloud. "If Acronix could move time forward and slow it down, then Krux-"

"Krux's powers were the opposite of his brothers," Wu finished. "He could reverse time, it was an advantage in combat. Know your opponents next move, know how to counter it. He could even control time to the point of halting it; of course, he didn't halt himself. We knew we had to prepare, fearing that next time we would not be so lucky."

A silence fell over them as they thought about what Sensei had said. Just hearing how they struggled against the Time Twins made them think what would've happened if both twins were there to fight them. Time was the very force that controlled everything.

Lloyd broke their thoughts as he asked Wu, "You said the Hands of Time were unbeatable, yet you beat them. How?"

"The way one often defeats an enemy by taking away their weapon," Wu explained.

"But their weapon was time," said Zane, confused.

"Indeed, our only hope we four blades hastily forged from chrono steel: the Time Blades. Garmadon and I fought them, making them use their powers in a rage. You see, chrono steel is the only metal that can absorb elemental energy. Stripped of their powers, Acronix and Krux were two ordinary men, easily subdued."

"Acronix had a blade that made him sorta vanish," Maria said. "So that was one of the Time Blades, right?"

"It was," Sensei answered, "and the ability to control time was too great for anyone to possess. Garmadon and I knew the Time Blades themselves were a threat that must be eliminated forever. We created a temporal vortex to dispatch the blades to be lost to the ages. But Acronix and Krux refused to admit defeat; they thought they were more powerful than time itself."

"So what happened to them?" Cole asked.

"Krux disappeared into time itself, and I knew Acronix was going to appear yesterday, so I waited. He was the remaining loose end to tie." Misako had come back into the room and walked over to help Sensei out of his chair and onto one he could lie down on. It kinda worried the Ninja, Sensei was acting so…old. "Now he is no more."

Lloyd looked a bit confused. "Wait, you mean, like, _permanently?"_

"Never my intent, but it was his fate," Sensei explained. "Now Acronix is gone forever, along with that Time Blade. It took four decades, but the Hands of Time will never again threaten Ninjago."

"One question," Lloyd said to Sensei, even as his eyelids were drooping, "how did you know that Acronix was gonna return to the monastery at that exact moment?" Once again, the other Ninja began to ask their questions almost all at one time.

"Why didn't you ask for our help?"

"How many Elemental Masters were there?"

"...how many Time Blades?"

"….our parents, you said they were there?"

They didn't get their answers, Sensei Wu had fallen asleep and was snoring like an old man….well, an average old man. Misako ushered them out quickly. "No more questions, your Sensei fought a powerful enemy. He needs time to recuperate."

As Cole was the last one to leave the room, he closed the doors and turned to face the others with a look on his face. "Hey, I just realized the mural we saw at the museum…that must be the battle Wu just told us about!"

"But Dr. Saunders said the Hands of Time were a myth," Nya replied.

"True, but history is art," Zane said to her, "not science. Even an expert such as Dr. Saunders can be mistaken from time to time."

Jay laughed in agreement. "True that! Know how I know? 'Cause Acronix was a so called myth and we totally busted him!"

He high-fived Kai who quickly deadpanned, "Except now there's nothing to do."

"Or course there is!" Maria cheerfully said. "We've been fighting other myths for a while, I'm sure something will happen that will need us to step in."

"I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but we haven't seen any activity from the demons or anything unusual for a long time. Not since you-" Kai stopped as Lloyd was signaling him to stop what he was saying behind Maria. "…not since you..learned to control your powers better," he nervously said.

Releasing a sigh of relief, Lloyd looked over from his place upstairs and saw the scattered boxes that limited their space. "Well, the temple still needs unpacking. That's one thing we should focus on."

They all groaned in frustration. "Lloyd's right," Cole said.

"Kinda wished we hadn't busted him," Jay muttered. When no one was looking, he quickly got Nya's attention as she walked by. "Hey, Nya, wanna hang out?"

She nodded and the two walked off into another room. Kai shouted after them, "Don't get distracted you two!"

"Kai, you'll wake Sensei up," Maria gently scolded him as she tried reaching for a box at a top of a stack. "We can't be so loud, he needs rest."

"She's right, Kai," Lloyd agreed. "If we're gonna unpack, we gotta do it quietly and…Maria, don't do that!" All of a sudden, the Green Ninja had grabbed the Pink Ninja by the waist and set her on the ground. He took the box she had in her arms and scolded her, "You have to be more careful, this is really heavy."

"I'm fine!" she insisted, trying to reach for the huge box that Lloyd held up above his head. "I had it, just let me carry it!"

"We should try unpacking somewhere else, guys," Kai said to Cole and Zane. "We don't want to get hurt."

"I fail to understand what you mean. They're only having an argument," Zane replied.

"I'm serious, Maria!" Lloyd said with more authority as he was putting the box down. "What if your hand slipped and you dropped this on your foot?"

 **CRUNCH!**

Cole let out a scream, making everyone look down to see Lloyd had unknowingly placed the box on top of his foot. Lloyd quickly picked it up, allowing Cole to hop away as he rubbed it to make it feel better. Kai and Zane quickly gave each other a look before following after Cole and leaving the room.

"Why'd they leave?" Maria asked.

Lloyd just shrugged. Neither of them had a clue.

* * *

Almost an hour had gone by and they managed to unpack a grand total of three boxes. The process took a bit since a few things were cramped together if they were small enough. Then there was the struggle of getting them out without damaging the contents inside and put them where they belonged. It wasn't until the laptop they shared was found and turned on that they were to realize dark forces had yet to awaken.

"So, what're you looking up now?" Maria asked as she leaned on Lloyd's shoulder. Since he had found it, he browsed through the news to see if any crimes had occurred that needed them.

"Nothing really," he said with disappointment. "I'm trying to see if there's anything trouble but all everyone is talking about is the new Borg Watch."

"What about that video?" Kai asked while pointing at a video in the corner. It was titled _Borg Watch and Evil Samurai Reveal._ "It sounds serious, I'll get Jay and Nya."

He quickly ran down the hall where Nya's door to her new room was open. Kai was about to get them when he realized they were…having a moment. "Woah, sorry!" he apologized while quickly shielding his eyes from the potential horror of watching them… _kiss._ "Didn't mean to interrupt, I didn't see anything!"

"What's up?" Nya's voice asked.

"Something you need to see. Hurry!" Unfortunately as he turned to ran out of the room, he forgot to uncover his eyes and bumped into the door. He fell on his back and groaned as his forehead began to sting. Jay and Nya helped him up as they quickly headed out to where the other Ninja had began watching the video.

Lloyd pulled down the screen for them to see just as the video showed Dareth waiting in line at the Borg Store for the new Borg watch. Gayle Gossip was interviewing him as he spoke into the camera. _"That's why I never miss a Borg Store product debut!"_

He began pulling out his Borg products to show. _"Borg Pad, Borg Pod, I even bought the Cyrus PDA. I guess you could say I'm the company's_ Borggest fan!"

Maria was cracking up at his attempt at a joke while the other Ninja stared at how she struggled to catch her breath after laughing so hard. When she stopped, she noticed their looks and shrugged. "What? That was the funniest thing I've ever heard!"

Shaking that off, they turned back to see Cyrus Borg on the screen as music was being played by Rufus Mcallister, the Doomsday Comix shop owner, for his entrance. " _Not so long ago, if you wanted to tell time, you had to look to the sun, or a clock, or a wrist watch, or ask a friend,"_ Cyrus said. " _But the point is there had to be a better solution. Something that merged advanced electronics, and there is."_

Rufus began playing the music again, but Cyrus shook his head for him to stop. _"Today, I am proud to announce-"_ as Borg raised his hand that held a remote, the music began playing to early again and instead only gave a glare for it to stop. _"…that we are changing time itself! I present to you…."_

When he had actually expected music to be played, there was only silence. He gave Rufus a final look as he played the music on cue this time, the doors behind Cyrus opened with the push of his button revealing the new product. _"The Borg Watch!"_

However, instead of cheering, people began screaming and running away in terror. The camera shook as a stance samurai was walking calmly into the store, despite all the chaos occurring around it. The screen shrunk to a video as a newsman began to speak. _"That was the scene just moments ago in downtown Ninjago where the launch of the new Borg Watch was tragically marred by a samurai."_

"Well, Kai," Cole said, "you said there nothing to do."

"And Ninja-ing certainly beats unpacking! Actually, anything beats unpacking," Jay muttered.

"Yeah, too bad there's only **one** samurai," Lloyd told them. "They don't really need _all_ of us."

"So how we decide who gets to deal with it?" Kai asked.

Zane got their attention with his choice of deciding. "I suggest we assign each of ourselves a digit, then manually engaging a seven sided figure with graphical representations of each number to make a random, unbiased selection. …roll dice," he explained to avoid any awkward silences.

"Yeah," Nya slyly said, " _or_ we could just see…who gets there first!"

"Race ya!" They all shouted as they quickly ran out the door. Now, it is quite clear that Maria did depend on someone when getting on and off the floating island where the temple rested, so when the other Ninja used their airjitzu to fly down, she had to quickly catch herself from falling off the edge.

"Guys, wait for me!" she called to them. "I can't fly yet, can we start over or..?"

"Too late now, Pinky!" Jay shouted up in reply.

Although she felt tears come to her eyes, she did her best to force them away and headed back inside. A hand on her shoulder stopped her and spun her around. "Get on quickly," Lloyd told her with a smile. "If we're gonna beat them, we gotta be quick."

She smiled and quickly got onto his back. Before they descend, he looked back at her and said, "Don't worry about Jay, I'll deal with him later."

"No need, I'll just eat his pudding cup again," she said with a smirk.

" _You_ did that?" Lloyd chuckled.

Maria's face suddenly turned serious. "He ate my fudge pop that one time when I called dibs and wrote my name on it. You don't mess with Maria Psyche's food when it's chocolate or fudge based. Now let's make them eat our dust."

* * *

The Ninja's vehicles screeched to a halt as they stopped by the Borg Store and hopped out. It didn't matter though, they all reached it at almost the same time, it was hard to tell who really got there first.

"We got at the exact same time," Kai said, though it was obvious.

"Oh, darn! Now how do we decide who gets to fight?" Cole asked.

"Is that Dareth?" Kai asked while pointing at a familiar guy in brown. It was hard to make out, but it looked he was fighting the samurai, or attempting to. "Well, maybe he'll-"

He couldn't finish what he was going to say. Dareth's scream had interrupted and came towards them as he was thrown from the store onto the concrete. Maria was the only one who quickly kneeled to his side to aid him. "Dareth!"

"Sup?" he said while trying to catch his breath. "I roughed him up for you, but feel free to finish the guy off."

"Oh, Dareth," she said through tears of joy and pride, "thank you for your sacrifice. You really are a great example of a true Ninja that I want to be!"

Jay leaned over to Cole and whispered, "If she wants to be more like Dareth when we get back to our other mission, then we're doomed."

More people had rushed out of the store in a panic, getting the Ninja's attention. This wasn't the time to be standing around, it was a time for action. Kai looked over at the Titanium Ninja and asked, "Hey, Zane, you still have those dice?"

"I have virtual ones," he corrected. In his mind, P.I.X.A.L rolled the seven faced dice with each of their symbols as he mentioned earlier.

Finally, her voice came out from Zane, giving the name of the Ninja to fight the samurai. _"Kai."_

"Yeah!"Kai cheered while slipping his hood on and running in.

"Wait, aren't you gonna draw your sword?" Nya asked him.

"I'm good, sis," he shouted back. The Fire Ninja walked in, punching his fists together to be intimidating. He looked the samurai in the eye, not noticing it's unusual appearance, and spoke confidently, "Ok, I don't wanna brag, but the other day I helped stop, like an Elemental Master of Time. So I think I can handle one lousy sa-"

The second Kai touched him with just one finger, the samurai punched him hard enough to be flung back like Dareth had. He fell on his back and dramatically reached his hand up. "Who's next?" he squeaked out.

Zane looked at the Ninja and began to roll the dice again. P.I.X.A.L's voice spoke once again saying, _"Maria."_

"Pass," Maria called out from the mailbox where she and Dareth stood. "I've decided to stay here and protect Dareth, he's probably traumatized."

Jay stomped over to her and grabbed her arm. "He can live with it," he said while dragging her to the store. "You were picked and none of us can take your turn, so get in there, Pinky! If you care so much about Dareth, avenge him!"

"Fine," she said while puttingher hood on. "I'll go get the samurai, _for Dareth!"_

"Maybe this was a bad idea," Lloyd said while watching the Pink Ninja go up to the samurai. "Maybe I should go in."

"Dude, we've talked about this," Cole said while putting a hand on his shoulder. "You can't baby her, she'll be fine. She's stronger now, she has a good punch, and she knows spinjitzu. How bad could this end?"

The answer came as Maria flying through air after being thrown by their foe. She slammed into a streetlight and fell, but quickly got on her feet. "Well, I was able to slug him in the face, but it didn't do anything," she said while rubbing her back. "Who wants to go next?"

Once again, the dice was rolled. _"Zane,"_ was what P.I.X.A.L had said, making the other Ninja mad. Lloyd shouted at Zane as he was already heading in. "Oh, come on, that was totally rigged! We didn't even see the roll!"

It didn't matter anyways; Zane was immediately flung back into the mailbox Dareth was hiding behind the second he came into range of the samurai. It had became clear that they had underestimated this guy. It would take all of them to defeat him, so they all stood together, ready to face the approaching samurai.

Cole stepped out from them. "Hang on, guys. There's something I've been wanting to try again." He cracked his neck to loosen him up, his fists lit up as he prepared to strike.

"Oh, what, that earth punch thing?" Jay asked with doubt. "Like it worked so well last time!"

Despite what Jay said, Cole jumped and aimed his fist at the core. It was a direct on the center of the samurai's armor, power coming off from the blow. The samurai flew into the air, his armor pieces and a bunch of slithering snakes that fell down in his place.

"You totally disintegrated him!" Jay shouted Cole.

"I-it was an accident!" he nervously replied.

"Look!" Nya pointed at the snakes as they gathered the armor pieces and themselves in a pile. An orange dust veil had the snakes covered as the armor grew and grew. It built up until the dust had ceased and the samurai, with red eyes, a jagged blade, and a face of many snakes, stood before them.

"Ewww! Grosser!" Jay exclaimed.

"Come on, team," Lloyd said, "there's more than one way to stop a snake."

Following his lead, they got into position and shouted, "Ninja-gooo!" They surrounded the serpent samurai, bouncing him off each of their tornados like a pinball. To their success, he fell apart. To their dismay, he began to rebuild himself, laughing at their attempt.

"I'm starting to think we underestimated this guy," said Kai.

"It certainly appears so," Zane agreed.

"You said there was more than one way to stop a snake," Jay frantically said to Lloyd, "which way do you want to try now?!"

"Uhh…any of them?" It was more of a question for him than an answer for a Jay. He pulled out his swords and noticed how the samurai started to ignore them and walked into the Borg Store; it suddenly clicked in his mind. "It must be after Cyrus Borg, let's go!"

As they entered, the samurai had already cornered the inventor and was preparing to strike. Cole quickly jumped right in his path to keep him from getting closer. "Ok, big guy, that's far as you go!"

But the samurai grabbed Cole and threw him into a large phone model. The other Ninja prepared to attack as the samurai began to corner Cyrus again, but suddenly two more samurai identical to the original appeared in their way.

"Is it just me or are these guys suddenly multiplying?" Maria asked.

"You're not alone. Zane," Lloyd said to the Nindroid, "get Cyrus Borg out of here. We'll deal wth the samurai!"

"But you'll need my battle skills," he argued.

" _Zane, my creator needs you, too!_ " P.I.X.A.L's voice pleaded.

It was enough to get him into action. Just as the samurai was about to get him, Zane jumped over the counter and quickly grabbed ahold of his wheelchair. He wheeled him out of there as fast as possible. With Borg out of the store, the samurai turned their attention to what stood in their way: the Ninja.

They quickly locked into combat, two Ninja each taking on one. Lloyd and Maria slashed at their samurai with their respective weapons, making a few snakes fall off from its body. The samurai, however, seemed unfazed and retaliated with a powerful kick, knocking them both into Cole.

Nya used her water powers to shoot a burst of water at hers, but it only went through the samurai's body and ended up hitting Kai. She was about to get hit by its sword as he raised it high just as Jay blocked it with his nunchucks. The two were in a struggle, both trying to knock the other weapon out from their hands.

Ultimately the samurai had knocked Jay's weapon aside, but Nya quickly jumped in front to protect him and used her powers again, making the samurai disintegrate into snakes again. Just as previously, the snakes began to gather and attempt to rebuild itself, when Jay shocked it with lightning, making the snakes screech in pain.

"That's it!" He quickly looked around to see where the others were and found them taking the fight outside. The samurai he fought ran out to aid his allies just as Jay and Nya were right behind him to help their own friends. "Guys, I know how to stop these things! We gotta keep the snakes from getting back in the armor and reforming!"

"No kidding," Cole sarcastically said over his shoulder. "Any idea _how_?"

"Nya, use your water power!" Jay quickly instructed her. She shot a stronger stream of water at each of the samurai, making them become mere snakes again.

"It's no use," Kai said, "those snakes can swim!"

"Hah, hah, not in this pool!" Jay quickly electrified the water, causing the snakes to squirm in pain. He and Nya continued until they would show signs of defeat. "Look, guys," he said with a laugh, "electric eels!"

His joke wasn't well received as he only got blank looks. "Oh come on, that was a good one!" Jay declared.

The snakes began to squirm away into an open manhole and slithered down into the sewers. "And I thought unpacking was tiring!" Jay groaned as he and Nya had exhausted themselves from using their powers continuously.

"Nice job, they're gone!" Nya said, trying to cheer him up.

"For now," Cole corrected her.

"I wonder," Kai spoke while briefly picking up one of the samurai's helmets, "who were they?"

"Good question," Lloyd agreed. "Zane, can you analyze?" The silence had already answered him. "That's right, he's with Cyrus Borg. Come on," he told his team, "let's go get them."

The Ninja ran down a nearby alleyway where it was most likely the path Zane took. Each called out for Zane and Cyrus Borg, but they didn't have a response. Cole quickly caught their attention as he picked up what turned out to be a new Borg Watch.

"Hey, a Cyrus Borg Borg Watch, but no Cyrus Borg."

"So if that was Cyrus Borg's, then what happened to Zane?" Maria asked.

"I don't know," Cole muttered. "Maybe he-"

"Zane!" Jay screamed while pointing at a darker part of the alley. In the shadows laid the body of the Titanium Ninja, lifeless and inactive.

They quickly ran to his side, gasping as they got closer. They had already lost him once along with Sensei Wu. Whatever evil that was out there had two advantages over them. One: they were watching them, probably even as they were right now.

Two: they knew how and where to hit 'em.

* * *

* **I had to change that line. Lloyd, that's not a question, we've taught you better!**

 **Remember guys, feel free to ask questions, give comments, anything to get me talking.**

 **Next chapter on Ninjago: Legend Reborn….**

 **A Time Of Traitors**

 **Until then, God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good.**


	39. 38: A Time Of Traitors

**Disclaimer: You get the point, I only own the OCs, tumblr art, and all original pieces of art made by moi!**

 **Not Ninjago**

 **Hey! Sorry it's been a bit, but I will be posting HoT chapters quick as I can like BOOM! I tweaked them a bit more to give it a…CrystalliaWriting touch.**

 **Also, the next original** _ **Reborn**_ **chapter is scheduled for August 17** **th** **. I will post as quickly as I can so the final chapter and preview to** _ **Undone**_ **will be on the 23** **rd** **with the official release of the book the 29** **th** **; that's the anniversary of the first book!**

 **Now….let's read some fanfic!**

* * *

 **Chapter 38: A Time Of Traitors**

"It's not happening, Cole. End of story," Lloyd firmly told him once more.

"Come on! Maybe trying the helmet on is the only way to figure who they are and how those snake samurai things could do…well, whatever it is they did. Please?" the Earth Ninja asked again as he held the helmet up to Lloyd's face.

"Hate to break it to you, but your theory has a few flaws," he said while pushing the helmet away. "Let's say we do find out what it does but at a price. Whoever wears it could turn into a samurai snake thing or blow up because it wasn't made for a human's body. A number of things could go wrong!"

"Ooh! I'll be the wearer!" Jay excitedly said. "Maybe it could give me cool powers, or make me look cool."

Kai gave the Blue Ninja a look. "You did hear what Lloyd said right? You could blow up. And I don't think I want to waste time scraping Jay chunks off the walls."

"Or you could be put in some kind of trance or mind control by their leader and slowly become a samurai snake while loosing your humanity piece by piece," Maria chimed in. When everyone in the room stared at her with wide eyes, she quickly defend herself. "Hey, I went through that when I got possessed. I'm just saying that because it's possible and I'm not scared of sharing my thoughts so much."

"The point is," Nya said while snapping her head back at Jay, "you could get hurt. I kinda agree with Cole that putting on could help but…aren't you afraid?"

In a dramatic way, Jay stood tall and puffed his chest out. He valiantly took the helmet from Cole's grasp and put it above his head, pausing for an effect. There was a twinkle in his eye as he proudly quoted the words from his father's character, the one he looked up to aside from his dad himself, that were " 'Fear? Fear isn't a word where I come from!'"

The others rolled their eyes as he continued. "I will make this sacrifice on behalf of Zane, Cyrus, and my past life. I gotta live up to my legacy as the bearer of the Gem of Courage-"

"But it's been inactive for a long time, Jay," Maria whispered.

"I know that it's inactive, Pinky!" he shouted through clenched teeth. Jay cleared his throat and continued on. "I know the risks, but I'm willing. So...let's do this!"

Without giving them a chance to say anything, Jay had put the helmet on and sealed his fate.

He looked around and waited for something- a sensation, a feeling, a tremor, an explosion. Nothing happened to him. Cole and Lloyd quickly got into defensive positions the second he looked their way, but still nothing happened.

"Sorry, guys," he sighed. "Nothing. I wasted a good speech for nothing."

"Darn, I was sure trying on the helmet would help figure out who those samurai snakes guys were," Cole said, clearly frustrated his idea failed.

"Me too," Nya agreed. "Jay, are you sure the helmet doesn't do _anything_?"

"Besides make me look cool?" he slyly asked. The other Ninja just gave him a weird look. "What? I know how to accessorize."

Kai ignored Jay's question and grabbed the helmet out of his hand, his reflection distorted as he observed every detail. "Something about this is familiar to me," he thought aloud. "I just can't place it. Perhaps Sensei Wu knows something."

"Of course Sensei knows," Jay said as the Ninja walked over to Wu's room. "He's old, he's got a long white beard, and is the smartest guy we have other than-"

Just as they arrived at the doors to Sensei's room, they stopped and stared as Zane, who was still inactive, was parked outside on trolley. It was a bit unnerving seeing him offline and so lifeless. He may have been the last person to be with Cyrus Borg, but the chances of bringing him back just so he wouldn't be in this state were slim.

Kai bursted through the doors to the room breaking the silence and waking Sensei Wu up. "Sensei Wu, this helmet," he said as he placed it on the old man's lap," I feel like I've seen it before. Can you tell us anything about it?"

Wu shook as he got up and picked up the helmet. His eyes barely opened as he observed it himself. "Curious.." he mused. "Time.."

"Time.." Kai said.

"Time waits…"

"Time waits…?" Nya asked.

"Time waits for no-" Sensei Wu didn't finish his sentence as he fell back and immediately went to sleep. The Ninja just stared at each other until he jolted back up. "Did someone mention lunch?" he asked, shaking even more than before as he reached out to them.

"No Sensei, no one mentioned lunch," Lloyd said as he helped him settle back in bed.

"Then why did you wake me?" he complained before falling back asleep. Lloyd took the helmet off Sensei's lap and ushered the others out of the room.

"He isn't himself," Lloyd explained. "He needs his rest."

"Clearly," Jay agreed, "lunch isn't for three more hours. This is just great. Snake samurai attack Ninjago, Acronix shows up, Cyrus Borg is missing, and now our team is down one Sensei and one Ninja!"

"We've gotta Zane back online, he was the last one to see Cyrus Borg."

"Yeah, except Cyrus Borg is only one with the equipment to get him back on line," said Cole.

"I might be able to reboot him with the computer at the Samurai X Cave, but I could use some help," Nya said, looking at the group for volunteers.

"Well, I'm in," Cole spoke up.

"You know I am," Jay said.

"I'll stay behind," the Green Ninja said. "One of us should stay behind and keep an eye on Sensei Wu."

"Make that two," Maria said with a smile. "I'll also stay back and double check if these samurai have any connection to demons or troublesome spirits. Can't rule 'em out."

"I'll go to the museum and talk to Dr. Saunders, he's an expert on everything Ninjago," Kai explained. "Maybe he knows something that Wu is too weak to tell us."

"Good thinking," Lloyd said, placing the helmet on Kai's head. "Take it with you and see what you can see."

* * *

Sometimes the wrong people stay on the sidelines instead of getting in on the battle. People say it's because they're cowards, weaklings that would be taken down just like that. Truth be told, they are weak but not in a physical way.

Where the true weakness lies in these kinds of people is an absence of willingness. Willingness is the true strength behind it all that gives us a boost to grab ahold of opportunity, to show our strengths and never let go. Not everyone grabs ahold, it's the people who stay behind and wished they'd done something.

That's how Lloyd felt at this moment.

His friends were out there where another attack from the snake guys could happen at any given moment. And here he was sitting on chair, babysitting his Sensei that kept coming in and out of his nap, craving tea and asking when lunch was. Knowing his Sensei was attacked by a rogue Elemental Master made him wished he pushed the issue further when he insisted on going alone. Just moments ago, his team split up and he could've gone with either of them to help or be there for backup.

Lloyd settled on being with the person he should've protected in the first place. He was given so many choices, but they were all hard. Of course he picked the option where he would end up doing nothing. The thought of being a Sensei one day and teaching others and making choices like this again was…impossible.

"Maybe you should have some as well," Sensei Wu's voice said.

"Wh-what?" Lloyd asked, snapping out of thought. He noticed his mother had entered the room and was serving focus tea to help Wu.

"You seem distant."

"Yeah," he sighed, "it's just that…as a Sensei in training, it feels like I should be doing something. But what?"

"A true Sensei," Wu began to say, "must always…"

"Yes, Sensei? A true Sensei must always…?" Lloyd eagerly asked.

But Wu had fallen asleep once again. It wasn't long before he shot back up and said, "Only then, will he be a true Sensei."

"Uh, sorry? I-I didn't quite get that."

"I said, ' a true Sensei must…," Sensei Wu had fallen asleep once again, sitting up with his head lowered. Lloyd and his mother glanced at each other before he left the room. That focus tea was starting to sound pretty good about now.

He kept his head down as he went down the hall. 'What's wrong with him?' he thought. 'Is he lying about how hurt he really is?'

It was Lloyd who got hurt as he turned the corner and bumped into Maria. The two fell down, scrolls scattered on the ground as they rubbed their heads to soothe the pain. "I'm not sure about you, Lloyd, but I think since times are hard now, the universe wants us to _put our heads together,_ " she joked.

"Great, now you're making jokes like Jay," he said, unenthusiastically, gathering the scrolls and shoving them in her arms. The Green Ninja began to walk away, leaving her stunned for a moment.

"Um, Lloyd," she managed to say, "you seem kinda upset. Do you wanna talk about it?"

He stopped and sighed before facing her. "I'm just stressed, okay? Sensei's not himself and I'm the only one not doing anything to help with whatever's going on. I should've gone with the others but I just…I couldn't."

Maria shrugged her shoulders. "That's fine; everything we choose to do has a trade-off but we can live with the mistakes. You'd probably would be more worried if you didn't stay with Sensei. Truth be told, the way he's acting is scaring me, too."

Lloyd smiled and arched an eyebrow. "Well, this is new. I don't remember _you_ ever giving good advice to _me_ before."

"Well, I kinda remembered the lessons my dad left behind," she said as she pulled her phone out, scrolling through the pictures. "I think it's because my mom emailed me this." Maria held her phone up with a picture of a younger version of her mom, hair down in a ponytail. She was hugging a man with a stubble beard and light brown hair that was a mop of wavy curls.

"Huh, that explains your hair," Lloyd said. "By the way, what did your dad do before he…well, before he left?"

"He was a cop here in the city," she explained while putting her phone away. "He was going places, but he went to Tranquilville one day, met my mama, and gave up his big opportunity to be with her. Sure, he became a small town cop, but he was still a hero. He always wanted to make life a little better by putting away bad guys, at the same time he got that and the only woman for him."

"Is that why you became a ninja?" Lloyd asked. "To be able to make life better?"

His words gave her a distant look in her eye as she remembered that day she joined them. "Yeah," she sighed, "it was, and I thought I could be more in touch with my dad. I feel like I understand him better, and because of that, I realize my role in our other mission a lot better. Maybe…when I fight Onryō and defeat him, I can make life a whole lot better for a lot of beings out there."

The Green Ninja ruffled her hair with his hand, getting a chuckle out of her. "You will. One day, you'll be a great inspiration for all who need hope."

"Ok," she said, taking his hand with a tight grip. "And I promise that when you become a Sensei, I'll be with you and tell everyone about you and the great things you can do. I promise."

Lloyd returned her grip. "I do, too."

* * *

Kai had rushed to the museum, which was not in the least full of people, and went into the former _Hall of Villainy_ exhibit, hoping to find him. He looked around as he called out, "Hello? Dr. Saunders?"

There wasn't an answer, but he was bound to be around. The museum was basically his home, the old man was practically an exhibit himself! Dr. Saunders was the only guy available to reveal something about the helmet's origin. Kai had been walking subconsciously toward the wall, wondering where the curator was, that he stopped and realized he faced his parents.

It was just a portrait, but it felt real enough that he could talk to them, so he tried. "Mom, Dad…I wish I could ask you about the helmet." He stopped and sighed, it just wasn't the same. "Actually, I wish I could ask you anything. It's been so long."

When he and Nya first saw this, she claimed she was four at the time this mysterious painting was made, but deep in Kai's mind, he could feel old memories stirring awake as he looked at the scenery. Remembering the old blacksmith shop was easy, but it became more detailed after that. He could remember their scents; they smelled like they were slightly burned after making armor and weapons, but his mother had a faint, sweet smell of a fresh spring mixed in. Cooling, refreshing, and soothing.

Soothing…his mother's tone of voice came back in his ears. It was soothing and smooth, especially during that day when he became a big brother.

" _Kai, say hello to your sister, Nya,"_ she had said. She and his dad were beaming as his mom had grabbed a swaddled baby girl from behind her and placed her in his arms.

She was soft and smelled sweet, just like mom. Her eyes had a newness to them, but also had his reflection in them. And she smiled. She smiled at him, as though she trusted him. Kai believed that and decided not to break that trust as he nuzzled her and said, " _Hello."_

But it was short lived. The memory ended and he was back to reality. He was just a guy staring at a portrait of his parents who were…who were gone.

"Your kids miss you, you know," he whispered.

It didn't really matter. They couldn't hear him.

* * *

"Okay, I've got nothing," Maria admitted to herself as she fell back on her air mattress. She had examined every scroll and every page of her book for any kind of demon or spirit that might've been behind this and found nothing. It was back to square one when her phone rang. She picked it up and answered it without looking at the I.D. "Hello?"

" _Maria, it's Jay,"_ his voice frantically said. " _We need you here in the downtown area, it's the snake things again."_

She sprang up and headed towards Wu's room. "Got it, I'm getting Lloyd right now. We'll meet you down there and-"

" _No, we need you,"_ said Jay. _"Just you. These guys are kidnapping people, as a precaution Lloyd should stay and protect Sensei. As another precaution, don't tell Lloyd."_

The Pink Ninja stopped dead in her tracks. "Don't tell Lloyd?" she repeated. "Look, he's been protective of me because he's on edge, I don't want to make things worse. If I sneak out and come back with the slightest wound, he'll go mad."

" _Then I'll take responsibility for whatever damage that happens to you,"_ he vowed. _"Cole and I are on our own, we just need ONE extra pair of hands. Please?"_

Maria sighed. "Fine, I'll come. But how the heck am I gonna get down there? I can't fly yet."

" _Simple. Just take the Super Sonic Raider Jet."_

"Again, I can't fly," she replied. "Maybe this is a bad-"

" _Maria, Cole has mysterious glowing hands that do who knows what and Nya went to help Kai, so please…_ _ **GET DOWN HERE RIGHT NOW, PINKY!"**_

Jay quickly hung up, leaving a ringing sensation in Maria's ear before she put her phone away and trudged to the garage. "I wish he'd stop calling me that."

* * *

It felt like the answers were there, but they needed to be pieced together to make sense. That's all Kai thought as he kept locking eyes with the portrait when he remembered the reason he came-

"Ninja!" Dr. Saunders screamed in surprise.

Kai was startled himself before realizing it was the curator. "Dr. Saunders," he said relieved.

"In the very flesh-flesh! You were expecting different doctor?" he asked with a wink.

"No, you just startled me," Kai said, rubbing his head in embarrassment. "Actually I was looking for you."

"Oh, were you now?" The curator hid his angered expression from the Red Ninja.

Kai handed him the helmet and asked, "Do you know recognize this?"

Dr. Saunders examined it carefully as they walked. "Hmm, it slightly resembles a post serpentine samurai war battle helmet. But it's probably just a knockoff, cheapy, cheap, cheap!" he said in his usual giddy tone. "Perhaps custom from Ninjagocon?"

"Uh, I don't think so. We got it off a snake samurai warrior we defeated," Kai explained.

"Snake warrior?"

"Well, actually it was bunch of snakes, like twisted into one. It attacked the Borgstore. It was on the news; don't you watch TV?

"No," Saunders quickly answered, "I despise TV." He turned and mumbled under his breath, "A vile contraption."

The way he acted in that moment was concerning, like he had a dark side to him almost. The thought vanished as Saunders shot up and resumed his peppy behavior. "I mean, you should leave it with me. Perhaps I can look into its origin, so goodbye!" The curator began walking away with the helmet, but wasn't giving up.

"Sensei Wu always says, 'Never put off tomorrow what can be done today,'" he quoted. "So I would like to look around now. Maybe I'll stumble across something useful. Is that okay?"

"Of course," Saunders said, he voice slightly tense. "We are open to the public seven days a week…late on Thursdays."

* * *

Jay and Cole kept kicking back snake samurai that craved at them with swords, but did little as they had people hostage. "Looks like somebody wants to play," Jay said to Cole. "Wished Maria and the others were here."

"Well, say hello to our two new members, Lefty and Righty!" Cole had his fists glow respectively as he named them; however, just from that simple action, a wave of power knocked him off balance, along with Jay and a nearby traffic light.

"Woah, if I'm not more careful, I could take all of us out," he exclaimed.

Jay cleared his throat and looked down on Cole's fists. "Lefty, Righty, nice to meet you. Also…DO BETTER!"

"Ok," Cole told him. "Don't shout at them." He wound up a right punch, the newfound force of his hands sending him flying off the ground and at the snake samurai he locked on to. The samurai, however, sidestepped out of the way, allowing Cole to fly into a car. When he got out, he sliced a streetlight down and flew into a fire hydrant and stuck on a building wall for a moment.

Cole then flew from car to car, piling them up and chucking one at a couple of snake samurai that were approaching Jay, almost squishing the Blue Ninja. "Cole, watch where you're throwing those things!" Jay shouted at him.

The Earth Ninja freed himself from the pile of cars as his hands swung violently on their own. "It's not in my hands!" he exclaimed.

"It _is_ you hands!"

"I'm still getting use to them!" Cole shouted.

"Okay, how about this? Get use to them in their direction!"

 _ **SCREECH!**_

Jay whipped around and saw the Raider Jet screeching to a halt on the road, nearly flattening him if it hadn't stopped in time. The top bursted open, a dizzy Maria stumbling out. Jay quickly caught her and hugged her in excitement. "Ha, ha, you made it! You really are reincarnated from an embodiment spirit of hope 'cause here you are when we needed you!"

"Jay, can you please let me go? I think I got whiplash," she squeaked. "Please, we really need to- duck!"

It was too late. Cole had let his fist take the direction and managed to flip a samurai over his head and into Jay, knocking him into the garbage that closed on him while the Pink Ninja fell flat on the street. Cole rushed to help Jay as Maria tried standing up. Her vision was blurred and her hearing was gone for a moment, but as she saw the people getting forced down into the sewers, she slipped on her neko-te and charged.

"Hey!" she shouted, gaining their attention. "You're not taking the people anywhere, not today!" She sent a flurry of punches the nearest snake samurai, reducing it to multiple snakes. They quickly slithered around her arms and legs before forming the samurai once again, with a tight grip on her that limited her movement.

"What're you doing? Let me go!" Her pleas did nothing as she was pulled down into the depths of the sewer. "Stop it! Jay, Cole, help me!"

* * *

"Sensei Wu taught us any problem could be solved," Kai said as he examined each exhibit, "it just takes time and thought." He began to walk over to a golden snake sarcophagus and tried to see if that could give him a clue or something. Dr. Saunders quickly stood by him, actually he was very close ever since Kai had insisted on staying.

"I am of course very certain there is nothing to interest you here," he nervously said.

"I don't know, I mean, what if this guy was related to the snakes we fought?" Kai asked the curator, oblivious to the wheelchair he tried to hide.

"Oh, not likely and I doubt you'll find anything," Saunders said while hiding the wheelchair behind the sarcophagus. "Our collection is mostly harmless artifacts." He began ushering Kai out when he stopped in front of an ancient chair.

"Maybe," Kai said as he jumped on the chair, "but you'll never know what might open the door to some secret information. Something I'm missing, like you know that expression, ' One can't see the forest for the trees?' Something that's right in front of me."

He hopped off just as he heard a door close behind. Confused at the sound, he turned around to see Dr. Saunders against the wall and quickly ushering him out again. "I really must insist you go home, it is after closing time."

"Yeah, I guess you're right," Kai agreed. "it was a long shot anyway, I guess time really flies when-" he stopped after saying that word, time. "Wait a minute," he told the curator as he looked back on the helmet that rested on a stone snake statue.

Acronix suddenly appeared in his head for some reason, then came the battle. There was some sort of connection, but it wasn't in the way he fought, it was what he wore. He remembered he had on symbol that represented time and his helmet made his eyes more-

"That's it!" Kai ran over and quickly grabbed the helmet, comparing it with the ones the Acronix and Krux were wearing. It all came together as he exclaimed, "The helmet, it's just like the one they're wearing! But Acronix is gone, and Sensei Wu said Krux was lost in time forever, unless… Krux must still be around somewhere!"

"Don't be ridiculous," Dr. Saunders told him, unaware of his mustache getting stuck on the stone statue's snake. "They are myth!" he shouted, falling down due to the his caught mustache pulling him back…and falling off.

Kai froze at the sight of this and a mask Saunders wore that was now revealed. He looked back at the painting and put one and two together. "Dr. Saunders…you, you're Krux! Sensei Wu was wrong, you're not lost in time."

"No, no, no, no, no," Krux said, covering his face. "That is positively…correct!" He spoke in a more evil voice, uncovering his face and flashing a wicked grin. "I've been hiding right under his nose for decades!"

"I knew you've seen the helmet before!"

"Aren't you clever?" Krux ripped off his curator clothes, under which were garments that were similar to what Acronix wore. "Such a smart little Ninja!"

Krux was getting to close, allowing Kai to strike. "Ninja-go!" His spinjitzu knocked the old man off his feet, panting as he locked eyes with him.

"I almost forgot that Wu taught you spinjitzu!" Krux spat.

"He did, but I came up with this one all on my own!" Kai did a front flip and quickly twisted his head body to deliver a kick to the head. The two landed on opposite sides of the room, waiting for the next move. The Red Ninja got an idea, he acted quickly by jumping off the stone snake's head and into Krux for an added effect.

Krux was only stunned for a moment before the two were locked in close combat. The second the Elemental Master foolishly allowed an opening, Kai threw him into the sarcophagus, popping open with Cyrus Borg inside, gagged and bound.

"Cyrus Borg? You kidnapped him!"

"I prefer the term… _acquired,"_ Krux hissed.

A look of realization came upon Kai's face. "That means that you took out Zane, too!"

"Nothing is getting by you. Today is your day," Krux said, mockingly, "too bad it will be your _last!_ You and I are an equal match, but let's see how you do against both Hands of Time! Brother!"

 **KNOCK, KNOCK, KNOCK!**

Only a faint but furious knocking sound replied. Krux called again, "Brother?!"

Taking the chance while he was distracted, Kai shot a burst of fire at his chest, pushing Krux back and infuriating. Krux charged forward as they both threw punches at each other, neither able to make a direct hit yet. "Is that all you got?" he mocked again. "You're parents would be disappointed in you!"

For a second, Kai froze. That word struck him harder than Krux as he kicked him into the snake statue. Kai shook it off and angrily replied, "Don't you mention my parents!" He was about to strike again when he noticed the head falling off the statue, nearly squishing as he managed to dodge.

"Wu may have been a good teacher," Krux said, holding Borg's wheelchair above his head to be thrown, "but he's not here to help you now!" He chucked the wheelchair at Kai, but he managed to grab it.

"Don't mention Wu either!"

"Oh Ninja, such misplaced loyalty," Krux sighed.

Kai hastily got on the wheelchair and used it to charge at Krux, only to be pushed back and almost crashed into his parent's portrait. "My parents helped Wu and Garmadon defeat you once," he said while standing tall, "and I will do it again."

Krux let out a laugh. "Is that what you think? That your parents helped defeat me and my brother?"

"That's what I _know,"_ the Red Ninja said, confidently. He drew his sword and ran towards him. "Sensei Wu told me."

"But you weren't there, young Ninja," Krux said, quickly grabbing a sword from a display case to defend himself. "I was there," he shouted, blocking the first blow with clang of metal echoing, "and Wu, and your parents. Wu told you a lie, you're parents were not who you think they were. They didn't fight against us, they fought with us!"

Kai was pushed back and sent flying across the room. He got up shaking after hearing Krux's words. "What? It can't be… They were heroes!"

"True, they were heroes. Heroes for _our side."_

"I don't believe you! Sensei Wu wouldn't lie to me about this!" Kai's voice had gained more volume as his anger grew.

"Surely you can see why he didn't want you to know the truth. Your parents," Krux had a spark in his eye just before he shouted, " _ **were traitors!"**_

Everything Kai knew and held onto of his parents suddenly crumbled. It all faded as those words reached his ears, his breath beginning to become hard to catch. In that final moment before he snapped, he heard her again. _"Kai, say hello…Kai…Kai…Kai.."_

" **NO!"** Kai screamed, anger blinding him as he charged and swung his sword at Krux, not noticing how Krux had laid his sword out to trip him. He fell flat on his face, his chest puffing as he heard Krux cackle.

"Oh Kai, you've let your emotions get the best of you. The truth hurts," he nonchalantly said.

Kai quickly reclaimed his sword and jumped up into an offensive position, his sword above his head. "Not as much as this will, liar!"

 **CRASH!**

The sarcophagus containing Cyrus Borg bursted from the wall, dropping the contents inside. It was Borg that did this, from a hole in the wall came Acronix with the Time Blade in his hand. "Sorry I'm late."

The Fire Ninja was astonished. "Acronix? You're alive?"

"Ah, yes. You've met my twin brother," Krux said.

"You know for twins, one of you looks _much_ older than the other!"

"He was born three minutes early," Acronix explained, gesturing at Krux.

"Time waits for no one!" The twins charged at Kai, thrusting their respective blades in sync. The Ninja managed to take down Krux after jabbing the hilt of his sword into his wrist, but he was off guard. Acronix had knocked him into a wall where he fell down in pain.

Kai managed to lift his head to see Borg shout indistinct words at him, but it became clear it was a warning. A glint from the Time Blade blinded him for a second before noticing Acronix above him, preparing to deal a final blow."As for you, little Ninja, your time is up!"

Before the blow was dealt, a stream of water pushed him to the side, giving him a clear view of his sister. "Ah gee, what a mess," Nya sarcastically said, "and to think we just finished cleaning up the museum."

"Nya!" Kai quickly ran to her, giving her a high five. "Good to see you, sis."

"Back at you, bro," she said, the two turning to see the Hands of Time preparing to strike. "Let's teach these to about sibling rivalry!"

Both sides charged; Kai dealt with Acronix while Nya got Krux. Both pairs of combatants were even, neither could land a blow as they all blocked each attack that was thrown at them. The Fire and Water Ninja backed up from the attacks, their backs touching as they caught their breath.

"They're good," Nya commented. "Trade ya!"

The two switched positions, facing their new foes and charging in. Kai lit his fist on fire as he swung a punch at Krux, who grabbed it. He tried again, only to be kicked back just as Nya fell at his feet. "I could really use a hand, brother!"

"I'm here for you, sister!" He helped her up and locked hands with her, flinging her over his head as she kicked Krux into the empty sarcophagus, closing him in. Kai laughed as they faced Acronix. "Looks like we have the upper hand now!"

Acronix quickly glanced over to Cyrus, who struggled to reach the Time Blade, and slid over, grabbing the blade for himself and holding it high, preparing to use it. "Until next time, Ninja."

"Nya, we can't let him-" Kai was cutoff as Acronix had warped him, Borg, and the trapped Krux away. "-use it!"

"He's gone," Nya whispered. "They took Borg."

"Vanished, before our very eyes." Kai noticed the helmet was on the ground and walked over to pick it up. It was this helmet that was the key to Dr. Saunders true identity. If only he noticed sooner. If only…

* * *

The remaining Ninja, excluding Lloyd, gathered in the Samurai X Cave where Zane was still plugged in, offline and lifeless. Kai sat away from them as Nya finished explaining what had happened. "So Acronix and Krux are working with those snake samurai."

"This doesn't make any sense," Jay said, "why are they taking Ninjago's builders? And why take Maria?"

"Oh yeah, how did Lloyd take the news about her?" Nya asked.

Jay pulled out Maria's phone from his pocket. "Well, first he tried calling her, so I answered and said she was with us. Then he asked for details so I just said she was in the bathroom. But it's been almost two hours so...technically, he's ok with it."

"There's too much information that we don't know here," Cole groaned.

Kai spoke to himself, "I'll say, was Krux lying or are my parents really…" that word got stuck in his throat, but he managed to say it, "traitors?"

He felt a hand on his shoulder, and turned to see Nya. "You ok? You look like you're in another world or time."

She had to know. He knew, even if it might be a lie, that she had a right to know. Kai placed his hands on her shoulders and looked her in the eye. "What if everything you knew, everything you believed in, turned out to be a lie?"

"What?"

Before he explained, a whirring sound came from the computer. Cole shouted over the noise, "Hey, he's rebooting!"

The Ninja gathered around as Zane opened his eyes. His mouth releasing the first words after what was too long for them, "Four…seven…two…one…nine."

* * *

 **Next chapter on Ninjago: Legend Reborn….**

 **Scavengers**

 **Until then, God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good.**


	40. 39: Scavengers

**Disclaimer: Ninjago: not mine. OCs, fanart, etc: MINE!**

 **Hey guys, I wanna start off serious here.**

 **I'd like to extend a formal apology for this uncalled for hiatus. School's been busy and it took me a while to find the episodes in English again, but I had all summer and didn't really commit to the chapters because it was a long school year. So I relaxed a little too much and missed the anniversary and sequel release. I'm as upset as you guys are because I also wanted to release the rest of the art for the new title and finalized concept arts.**

 **I am truly sorry. But here's what we'll do.**

 **I've got things planned and I want to do a special little Day of the Departed chapter ASAP. To get caught up I've decided the only way is to shorten the Hands of Time chapters, because I'm pretty sure we've seen the episodes by now and I'm only really adding in Maria and explaining somethings that I thought could've used it in the episodes. I'll post whenever ASAP, then we will finish the book and resume our regularly scheduled chapters!**

 **Also, I updated my profile with more info on some OCs, including their powers, music themes, and background. More are on the way!**

 **There's no time to waste(get it?) so let's move out!**

* * *

 **Chapter 39: Scavengers**

"Why do I have to tell him?" Jay whined.

"You clearly said you were going to take _all_ responsibility for whatever damage happened to her, you have to tell him," Cole said.

"To be fair, I can't tell if they're hurting her right now, so it doesn't count!"

Jay received looks from Kai and Cole as they waited outside the temple's door. Inside, Lloyd was probably pacing around, waiting for them. Sooner or later they would have to go in, and that's just what Cole and Kai did. They each grabbed ahold of Jay's arms and carried him in, where sure enough Lloyd was pacing and stopped at their entrance.

"Oh, you're finally back," he said as he approached them. "Ok, I know that Maria didn't sneak out of her own choice, so if guys asked for her help behind my back, I'm fine with it. What matters is you guys are in one piece and-" Lloyd stopped as he mentally did a headcount, realizing three Ninja were not present. "Where are the others?"

Kai put an arm around the Green Ninja to keep the mood easy. "Lloyd, buddy, we've got some news. First off, turns out Dr. Saunders is Krux and Acronix is out there, working with those snake things. Nya's at the Samurai X Cave since Zane has a few bugs still and she can't leave him unguarded."

"And Maria's with them?"

"No, but we have an answer for that," Cole jumped in. "You see, _Jay_ called Maria and asked for her as backup, _Jay_ shouted at her to hurry down and take the Super Sonic Raider Jet, and _Jay_ -"

"Ok, that's enough!" Jay smacked Kai's arm off Lloyd, a serious look was in his eye. "Look, I was backing out of this, but I _did_ promised to take full responsibility of her in case anything happened to her. I told her to sneak out 'cause you've been smothering the kid, but she was a real hero in trying to help save the people those snakes were taking."

"Hold on," Lloyd stopped him. "Are you saying she's…?"

"No, no, no! She's fine…well, I'm not sure of that. Look, Lloyd," Jay took in a deep breath, "they took her."

Lloyd stood up straight as his face went pale. His eyes widened and his breathing became more audible. Using the worst case scenario to describe what he looked like, he looked as though he would throw up. "Those things… _kidnapped_ _her?"_

The Blue Ninja started to nervously fiddle with his hands as he tried to explain. "Technically, they weren't after her in the first place, they were after builders and craftsmen. You see I was knocked into the garbage and when Cole helped me out, she and the people were gone. The logical answer here would be she tried to help and got captured, but don't worry," Jay reached into his back pocket and pulled out a pink phone, "she dropped this…I think you should hold onto it."

Lloyd took it without making eye contact with any of them. "Go to bed," he ordered.

"It's not that late," said Kai, confused. "It's only 9:45, and if you're upset-"

"I said go," he snapped.

Startled by his dark tone, the quickly headed to their rooms to turn for the night. They would also lock their doors in fear of the Green Ninja's wrath caused by his growing grief…but he never would come after them. Instead, he paced around the room to calm himself, running his hands through his hair.

After that, Lloyd unlocked the phone, to no surprise that his name was the code, and scrolled through the pictures until he found the one of her dad. It was becoming clear that she was starting to look to her father for strength, maybe that's what tempted her into making a gutsy move like that. Whatever the case may be, she was out there on her own. No friends to give her hand and break away from the snake samurai.

And no dad or brother to tell her not to be afraid as she probably was by now.

* * *

"For the last time, let the people go!" Maria shouted at the samurai that subdued her. It continued to get darker after she demanded to talk to the people behind this. It felt like they'd went through miles of tunnels before the snake complied. "I'm telling you, you and whoever is behind this can take me but let those people go, they're defenseless and innocent!"

The samurai kept walking until he reached a room with a strange glass tank inside. There, at a table, were three snake samurai that were different than the others, Acronix and-

"Dr. Saunders?!" she exclaimed.

"A NINJA?!" Acronix shouted, having everyone else in the room turn and gasp at her presence. "What's a Ninja doing here?! Raggmunk, Machia, Blunck!" he screamed at the snakes, each snapping their heads at him as their names were called. "Which one of you gave the order to capture a _Ninja?!"_

"Calm yourself," the red female, Machia, said. "I had the Vermillion Warriors hurry the people to the sewers to transport them to the location without being seen. They must've gotten confused if she startled them. We ordered them to take builders, not brats!"

Maria cleared her throat, trying to look intimidating as she spoke. "First, I'm not a brat, I'm the Elemental Master of Spirit, the Pink Ninja. Second, I did charge at your Vermillion Warriors to help the people and this one caught me after I sliced into snakes. And third, whatever you want with those people, forget it, let them go and take me instead."

"Listen, _Elemental Master of Spirit_ ," Acronix mocked, "we have plans for those builders. You, on the other hand, are an annoying, unforeseen circumstance worth nothing more than potential bait. What do you think, brother?"

Dr. Saunders approached her and looked her over while thinking the decision over. "Well, she certainly looks stronger than when she was a child, and the fact that she was also able to reduce a Vermillion Warrior to snakes so swiftly implies she does have some skill with her hands, which might also be why this one took her. "

"Dr. Saunders-" the Pink Ninja started.

"Krux," he firmly corrected.

"Ok, Krux, why are you doing this? When I met you on my school field trip to the museum, you looked like you were living a good life. Why throw away something good to have your butt kicked by my friends? They'll find me eventually, preferably before you use me as bait."

Krux chuckled at her attempt to appeal to him. "My dear, you of all people should know that people like us bestowed with great power should use it to rule. I want to rule Ninjago with my brother, and you should've too when you had the chance," he leaned in and whispered, "Spirit Princess."

Maria gulped and pulled her head back. "What're you talking about?" she laughed nervously. "I'm not a princess. I don't have a crown, I don't even have a castle. Also I hate fairytales, so the irony there would be very-"

"You think I'm stupid?" Krux snatched her pink curl, pulling her forward. "You just _happened_ to come to the museum the day I find that painting of the queen that looks like you, and find a clock that gives you powers and a curl that shows what you really are?!" Krux took a deep breath and had a smirk on his face before speaking calmly, "But you know, a person like you would be very helpful in achieving our goal, so how about it?"

Maria straightened up with a stern look on her face. "I'm not as powerful as I'd like to be in order to fight, but I'll never use my powers to stoop so low and turn on my friends. And you can count me not using my powers to become a blinded, rude, selfish, old grump like you!"

Krux frowned and let go of her hair. He then faced the two male snake samurai, barking orders at them. "Take the princess with you and squeeze any information about the Ninja out of her."

"Of course, Krux!" the brown and heavily armored one said cheerily. "I, Raggmunk, will keep her under close watch."

"As will I," the orange samurai, Blunck most likely, hissed. "She will give us any and all information, one way or another."

The two snakes slithered towards, ready to take her away when Krux stopped them. He pulled out two pairs of shiny cuffs from his pockets and locked them on her wrists and ankles. "Just some _special_ vengestonecuffs the museum found along with the other junk at the ocean floor. I was going to test them on a more powerful Ninja, but you're our special guest."

Raggmunk and Blunck grabbed her arms and took her neko-te away forcefully, beginning to lead her out of the room when Acronix shouted, "Wait! I have to watch!"

"Watch what?" they asked.

"Her sing!" he said excitedly, like a child. "Apparently, princesses breakout into song at times like these. I'd like to see it for myself!"

"How up to date is he with modern times?" Maria asked Krux, completely unamused.

"Trust me, not enough," he replied with an annoyed look. "Just go before it gets worse."

"Yes, sir!" The samurai took her back down the tunnel from which she entered and shared a look.

"We have plans for you, little princess," Blunck said to her. "We just need you to tell us whatever we want with full cooperation."

"I'm technically not a princess or royalty of any kind," she replied. "Also, I'd never tell you guys, even if my life depended on it."

"Maybe, not _your_ life," Raggmunk said, "but perhaps the life of another."

* * *

Lloyd kept walking back and forth in front of Sensei Wu's room door, contemplating if he should go in or not. It was hard, Kai tried earlier but he kept falling asleep. His mom had to stay by his side because he couldn't take care of his basic needs by himself. It was he was a baby, needing to be waited on or else he'd get upset.

Should he try to ask for advice?

It was a lingering question that kept him up since five in the morning. Sensei was hurt, but he needed someone to ease his worries. He couldn't stop fidgeting and lost his appetite, it wasn't like he needed to eat to survive anyway. Lloyd was a wreck, a guilt-filled nervous wreck.

Maybe he should've been a better student and been there with Wu. Lloyd just felt that he should've been at Zane and Maria's side, too, but he couldn't be at two places at once, it was impossible. Maybe it was time he…no, it was a dumb idea. To take the position as Sensei wouldn't work.

Being Sensei meant keeping your head and avoid making mistakes at all costs, being the one who could always get the team through any mess. That's what made Sensei Wu so great; Wu was always full of wisdom to give and knew what to do in desperate times when others didn't.

'I-I could be a Sensei,' thought Lloyd. 'It would help further my training, it's probably time to follow in my father's path. Of course, I should ask for Wu's opinion considering he's still the official Sensei unless otherwise.'

Gathering what courage he had, he knocked on Wu's door. "Sensei Wu, may I enter?" When there was no answer, he decided he wouldn't wait any longer and went in. For a moment it looked like Sensei was awake and talking to his mom, but he shook it off and blamed his eyes for playing tricks on him.

"How is he?" Lloyd asked his mom, approaching the bedside.

"Still recovering," she replied. "He might come around soon."

As if on cue, Sensei sat right up in a panic, rambling off his head. "So many lessons, so little time! Always have your back facing the sun. Eight cups of water a day is a myth! And you," he said as he turned to Lloyd, "you should've been there when I-I…"

One of the strongest feelings a person can feel is guilt, just one slip up can make someone take drastic measures to get rid of it. Lloyd had felt a lump in his throat after Sensei had looked him in the eye and said that to him, guilt overcoming him. "He-he's right," he whispered to himself, "I've should've been there by his side… I failed my Sensei."

It was clear Wu wasn't fit to lead anymore, not like this. Lloyd clutched the phone in his pocket, took a breath, and said, "I will _not_ make that mistake again."

* * *

Out in courtyard in the new training area, Kai furiously kicked down one dummy after another, wishing it was Krux himself. He couldn't get his answer from Wu, having his frustration grow back into the anger he felt at the museum. The same kind caused by the shock of what he…no, of _all_ he knew of his parents crumbling up.

Far from him, Cole also fought out his anger on Jay, who had punching pads on his hands, expressing his frustration between punches. "Zane's down…Maria's kidnapped...people disappearing all over town, and we can't do a thing about it! If we just knew why Acronix and Krux are taking these people-"

"You know, my theory-" Jay interrupted.

"For the last time, they are **not** hostages!"

"How do you know?"

"No note," Cole deadpanned.

"Maybe they're going to hypnotize them into being an army," Jay said. "Oh, and maybe Maria will be their new Snake Queen and get a tail and everything. Trust me, it's not a fun time when the tail comes."

"Krux and Acronix already have and most likely lead an army of samurai snakes!" Cole punched the pads harder and swifter than before. It was starting to annoy him, all of it.

"You know my other theories," the Blue Ninja began.

Cole had enough and punched harder. "Don't say alien abductions, or dimensional rifts, or elven magic portals!" As he spat out those last words, he jumped high in the air, his fists aglow, and came down on Jay. The impact sent him a great distance away, it even made the floating island on which they lived shake.

"Sorry about that," Cole said, rushing over to help Jay up. "It's just…I'm tired of speculating, it's cost us too much and we need to take action. Right, Kai?"

But the Red Ninja couldn't hear him as his anger was reaching an explosive level. The dummies he attacked almost broke down completely as he punched harder.

"Kai, are you ok?" Cole asked. "You haven't been the same since you squared off against Krux, did he do something to you?"

"More like said something," he mumbled. "When I see him again, I'll… No, I'm fine." Kai had stopped the rage he felt for now, not wanting to worry the others.

"Good, cause I was just saying that we should stop sitting around asking questions and start taking action!"

"You mean you want to capture one of those snake things for Wu to question?" asked Kai.

"Actually, I just wanted to fight somebody and win this time, but that sounds good too!" Cole cracked his knuckles with a grin on his face. "In fact, maybe we could do both."

"That plan won't work." The Green Ninja walked out into the courtyard where the others stood.

"Why not?" Kai asked, confused.

"Because Sensei Wu is still recovering from his battle with Acronix. He passes out, he rambles. I think he's a lot more hurt than he lets on."

"Oh great! All this and now we don't have a Sensei?"

"Uh, that's…not exactly true," Lloyd said, scratching the back of his neck. It was clear he was a bit uncomfortable with this from the way he fidgeted, even after he decided he had to the role upon himself. He cleared his throat and continued. "With Sensei Wu out of commission…the logical successor would be…the…uh…"

"The Green Ninja," Cole finished.

"Correct."

The Ninja also felt awkward to this change. "Sensei Lloyd?" Cole said, trying to see if sounded right or had some ring to it.

" _Temporary_ Sensei Lloyd," Kai suggested.

"In training," Jay added.

Lloyd frowned at how they belittled his new role. This was going to take some time to get used to for all of them.

"Well then, Temporary Sensei Lloyd in Training," said Cole, breaking the silence, "we, near Ninja, await your words of wisdom, which I believe involve kicking some butt until we get a few answers!"

They high fives each other in agreement before running off. Lloyd shook his head before calling out to them, "Wrong. It's too random, we need a plan."

The three screeched to a halt as Kai whipped around with a wink. "We have a plan: go kick some butt."

"Really?" Lloyd arched an eyebrow. "Who's butt? Where? You haven't figured out the important details."

"We'll figure it out on the way down."

"No, we'll figure it out here first. That's what Wu would do." He headed up the steps, ordering them to follow. "Come on!"

"Oh, yay, I love sitting around and talking instead of doing," Kai sarcastically cheered.

"Cut him some slack, he's doing the best he can," said Cole. "He can't be that bad."

* * *

Maria panted as she hurried towards Dareth's dojo. Those idiots, Raggmunk and Blunck, made her watch as they were tearing apart everything metal in the city for….well, something. She managed to sneak away from them, but the chains were still on her. She could feel herself getting weaker every moment they were locked on her.

It wasn't long before she felt lightheaded, her vision becoming a blur. She could see it though, the dojo was just a few more blocks ahead. Maria leaned on a nearby wall of a building, walking at a much slower pace. She kept hearing her inner voice encouraging her not to stop till she reached the safe place.

But it was too much for her. So, with a wheezing exhale, she fell to her knees and collapsed.

Her body felt too heavy to move even when breathing. Screams of panic from the people from afar echoed in her ears. In her head, she imagined those screams belonging to her friends, the snakes torturing them as they had threatened.

"N-no…" she said to her illusions. "Please… I can tell you whatever it is you want. I-I-I beg you… Don't hurt them…"

Her eyelids fluttered open as she saw flashes of red approach her. Maria was suddenly lifted off the ground with a tight grip, her sight becoming clearer as to what grabbed her. "M-Machia," she coughed out. "How did you…?"

"Oh, please, those idiots can't hide anything from me forever." She bared her fangs as her eyes glowed menacingly. "Now, you will tell me where Raggmunk and Blunck are and help with Operation: Blackout. If not, I can promise you that the next time your friends face our Vermillion warriors, they'll learn they should've stopped when they had the chance, starting with the green one."

"I'll talk! I'll talk!" Maria quickly answered. "Please, I'll tell you what you want. Just don't destroy them, now what _do_ you want?"

Machia brought her in closer. Maria could feel her sticky, hot breath on her face as the snake general hissed, "Where is the source of power for the city?"

* * *

Three hours.

Three hours and Lloyd had bored Kai, Cole, and Jay out of their minds. They could've been using the time to do something useful, instead, they were sitting around as he doodled places where the snakes were potentially hiding. With nothing else to look forward to, Jay began sipping his drink loudly with his straw, purposely messing with him.

"So, I think we could rule out…."Lloyd paused each time and glared at Jay as he slurped. "…these spots…as hiding places. These are too small….these are too public and these are too obvious."

"Or, are they so obvious that they make the perfect hiding spot?" Jay suggested.

"Hmm, interesting." Lloyd went back to the drawing board, taking the new idea into consideration.

As Jay slurped once more, Cole nudged him. "What're you doing?"

"I'm bored, so I'm messing with him."

"But now Lloyd's starting over," Kai whispered, "he's gonna take even longer."

Jay just shrugged as he continued with his little trick before Lloyd slammed down his pencil, marching right over to him. He put on a friendly smile. "Hey, Jay, sounds like your straw is broken. Let me have a look."

Jay complied, and before anyone knew what was really going, Lloyd threw it up in the air, quickly summoning a beam of energy at it, reducing it to ash. He walked back over to the drawing board, leaving an open mouthed Jay in shock.

Just as the planning was about to continue, the doors opened as Ronin and a distraught Dareth walked in. "Sorry to interrupt what looks like the worst party game ever," Ronin said, "but the city is under attack!"

Kai, Jay, and Cole stood up and cheered at the opportunity given to them to allow them to leave. As they received looks concerning their unexpected reaction, Jay awkwardly coughed, "Oh, uh, that's terrible."

"A bunch of snakes and samurai are running around stealing every piece of metal in the city they can get their hands on," Ronin explained.

"They took my trophies!" Dareth cried out. "MY TROPHIES!"

"Was there any sign of Acronix or Krux?" Cole asked.

"Who?"

"It doesn't matter, let's go!" Cole began to lead the Ninja out, but only got a few steps away before they were stopped by Lloyd.

"Wait a minute, this doesn't make any sense! Why are they going after metal after kidnapping a bunch of people?"

"We'll figure that out when we pummel them down there," said Jay.

"No," Lloyd firmly denied, "this might be a diversion to lure us away from the temple so they can finish off Wu. I'm not leaving him alone."

"We can't just ignore the damage they're doing," Kai said as he walked up to Lloyd. "Besides, what if they have Maria down there with them and this is our chance to save her? Are you going to let her suffer and wonder where you were when she was being held captive?"

Ronin stepped between the two with his own words to say. "Woah, woah, wait. Those _things_ kidnapped the princess?" He whipped around to face Lloyd with a look on his face. "You can't let them get away with this, she's worth a lot of mon- I mean, she's important and they might make her snake chow!"

Dareth jumped into the conversation and grabbed Lloyd by the shoulders. "Come on, man. They took my trophies AND the Pink Lady, valuable lives are at stake! She's the only real friend I got!"

Lloyd stepped back, confused as to what he should do. If there was a chance Maria was there possibly being held hostage, then they could at least save her and possibly gain a better understanding as to what was going on. On the other hand, there was a chance it was just a diversion, a way for the enemy to torment them further by taking Sensei Wu when they were occupied. Even worse, it could also be a way for them to take any remaining Ninja and capture them.

The possibilities of something going wrong was unavoidable; a list could be made of all the thoughts Lloyd was thinking of at once. He couldn't get a grip until he knew a decision had to be made here and now. "I understand all of your concerns, but I…" He stopped as he clenched the phone in his pocket. "I've decided it's best we stay here with Wu and figure out what those snakes are doing while we're at it."

Kai began to lead the others as he spat out, "Well, we're going down there."

"Didn't you hear me? I'm ordering you three to stay!" Lloyd said in his most authoritative tone. "We've left Sensei unguarded once, I'm not going to be a bad student and leave him behind like this."

"Well, we're ignoring that order for the good of the people," the Red Ninja said as held the door open for Cole and Jay, allowing them to exit first. He stopped as he was halfway out the door with a scowl on his face. "I'm pretty sure you're the top student in Sensei's eyes, but you haven't been too good a friend or big brother."

 **SLAM!**

The room was silent after the echoes of the door closing had faded, leaving Lloyd speechless. A lump was in his throat as he looked at the ground in case he started crying. He didn't want Dareth or Ronin to see him like this, weak and scared. A good Sensei was always supposed to look tough and be calm.

"So should we stay or…?" Ronin awkwardly asked.

"Just go," Lloyd told them. He heard their footsteps rush off, clearly they didn't want to stay either. With only one option left, Lloyd pulled out his phone and dialed Nya.

" _Hey, this is Nya,"_ her voicemail answered instantly. _"I'm here, but I'm not here on the phone probably because I have something important to take care off. Leave it at the beep!"_

He quickly ended the call and sat down, letting out a breath of frustration. No one was left to help him, he was alone. A good Sensei was a strong leader of his team. What was he now that his team abandoned him?

* * *

"Can't you move faster?" Machia growled in annoyance.

"I'm sorry, I didn't realize I'd run for my life and get dragged all over the place,or else I would've had better shoes on when I was taken!" Maria snapped back.

Machia squeezed her wrist more, with full intention of sending a stinging sensation through the Pink Ninja's arm. She didn't even wince as she was numb to any external pain. The internal pain however,deep inside her kept breaking her down.

Machia had been dragging her through the sewers of the city to get to the power station and cause a blackout as she planned. Before the mugginess and smell of the sewers made Maria sweat and feel nauseous, adding on to her fatigue. But after a while, it must've turned to evening as a cool breeze could be felt where ever there was a grate in their path. It cooled her down and got her mind off the aching pain her feet.

But it didn't help.

She couldn't feel anything anymore with these chains restraining her. She couldn't feel the slippery sewer walkway. The sound of rushing water and waste in waterfalls was mute to her, along with Machia's grumblings on how she didn't like this one bit. Instead, she only felt this presence in her that told her to get theses cursed things of quickly before it was too late.

"We're here," Machia said, gaining Maria's attention back. She led her up the ladder and to the manhole, popping it open to be hit with a burst of night's chill. In the wind, she felt a sprinkling of sand scratching her face, indicating they were close to the city's desert border. Ninjago City was almost in darkness, had it not been for its stars.

All of Maria's senses came flooding back, but it was short lived as Machia pulled her to the gates of the power station. She had her stand at the gate as ripped off the lock with ease. Taking ahold of her wrist again, she dragged her inside the station, kicked in the door and stopped as she held her hand to her, as though she had a headache.

 _SHHHHHISSSSHHH...SHHHHHISSSSHHH!_

Sounds of movement from deep in the sand behind them made them both turn around. Snakes came slithering in with armor pieces carried on their backs. They stopped right in front of Machia and began twisting and turning to form the Vermillion Warriors they were, armored and ready for combat.

"Vermillion Warriors, it's time we alter our plans to take care of those pesky Ninja," Machia said. "We must throw them off by plunging this city into darkness; only then can we finish collecting the metal needed to build it! Now, my Warriors, tear this place to pieces until there is nothing, not even a sliver of metal!"

The Warriors let out a battle cry and charged at generators, wires, lightbulbs, and anything else that they could break. In the midst of their destruction, Maria bravely tapped Machia on the shoulder. "Hey, I just have a quick question, completely related to the topic at hand, what're you guys building?"

"That's for me to know and you to forget about," the general hissed. "Unless you want me to break our deal, don't ask me again. Now come on, there's a junkyard nearby we need to stop at to make sure it has enough metal," she ordered as she grabbed ahold of the ninja's wrist again.

Maria's face went pale just after Machia had said that. Jay had said he grew up in a junkyard out in the desert long ago, the chances of it being the same one he lived in was highly likely. Knowing this was possibly her only chance to reach out to her friends, she blurted out the first excuse that came to mind. "I have to use the bathroom!"

"Hold it," Machia snapped. "We have to hurry, so stop whining!"

Not giving in easily, Maria snapped back. "Look, I've been walking all day and I'm hungry, I stink, and I've bloated because I've been holding it for hours, so I feel like a balloon about to burst. Second, I was not whining, I was complaining." In her most annoying voice, almost sounding like the typical girls at her old town, she began whining like a little brat. " _This_ is _whining!"_

"My feet hurt, like, _soooo much!_ I can't _even_ deal with all this _walking and sweating! My poooor hair,_ it's gotten _sooooo frizzy! Why_ did this happen to a good person like _meeee?!"_

" _ **SHUT UP!"**_

The Pink Ninja stopped as Machia, huffing and veins popping, pushed her forward and out the door. "Go around the corner and do what you must, I give you five minutes."

Wasting no time, Maria rushed around the corner and quickly fell to her knees. She ran her hands among the layers of sand until she found a tiny, sharp rock to carry out her plan. Trying to be quiet as possible, Maria began carving the spirit symbol on the side of the station, mostly hidden under a caution poster, hoping someone would come and see it.

"Time's up," Machia called from the other side. "Finish up and come."

"Alright, be patient," Maria called back while putting the finishing touches on her SOS sign. Satisfied with her work, she walked back to the front to the general. "My mother always told me never to rush when you're cleaning your hands, especially if you love to eat, ok-"

She stopped as she had realized darkness had befallen the city except for the station. With a major blackout like this Ninjago City felt lifeless, empty, cold. "Oh my… What did you and your warriors do?"

Machia latched her hand onto Maria's shoulder with a tight grip. "Our job."

* * *

Lloyd had been pacing for a while in Sensei's room, it was a miracle he didn't create a hole in the floor yet. Beads of sweat kept forming on his face, his breathing echoed his nervousness. It had gotten late at night, and Misako couldn't stand to see her son suffer like this anymore. "You're worried, aren't you?" she asked.

For the first time that night, Lloyd stopped at the foot of Wu's bed and looked up. "I am," he answered, "Sensei looks so pale and weak."

"No, I meant you're worried about Kai, Cole, and Jay," she clarified.

Lloyd's face stiffened at her claim. "No, I'm mad at them. I gave them a director order and they disobeyed me. And because of them, they put Maria in danger and now she's prisoner to those things!"

"Really? Not even a little bit?"

The Green Ninja faced his mother and was ready to deny her statement, but he saw the worry for him she had on her face. Taking a breath, he relaxed a bit and calmly spoke. "Alright, I am worried about them and Wu very much.

"We're falling apart and they won't listen to me because I'm not Wu, I'm just a temporary replacement. And Wu said so himself, I should've been there when he fought Acronix. I failed my Sensei and my team."

"You…you did not fail me," a weak voice said. It was familiar enough for Lloyd to snap his head up and see Wu sit up a bit. He quickly ran to his side; Wu was cold and shaking from exhaustion. "When I said "you should've been there," I meant the team. Things would've been different, but it appears I've caused a rift in the team for my choice of words."

"No, no you didn't, Sensei," Lloyd said, comforting him. "I've been making mistakes and now the guys won't listen and Maria's been kidnapped."

"Oh, nephew," Wu whispered as he placed his hand on Lloyd's face, "you shouldn't worry, she's close to her full potential because you've been a loving brother to her. She will be strong and wise just to see you again. As for the team, you must be patient with them, even if they ignore you."

"But how?" Lloyd asked, but Wu didn't answer. He fell back asleep and snored away. Frustrated, Lloyd walked over to the room's window and look down on the city. Somewhere down there his friends were scattered with no plan, it would be a wonder if they came back alive.

"May I tell you a secret?" Misako asked as she joined him by the window. "Wu's made mistakes before, sometimes he still does today. But he's a great leader, because a great leader isn't measured by whether he makes mistakes, but if he learns from them."

Having those words sink in, Lloyd gasped in realization. "Sensei's mistake was going alone…that's my mistake, too!"

"That may be, but it also means you'll be a good leader like him."

"But the team-" Lloyd started.

"It doesn't matter if they listen to you or not," she replied. "A good leader will always stand by his team, even if they ignore him. Learn from your mistakes and they'll look to you."

"I understand, but I don't know where they are."

At that moment, the light from city started to die down. The last place to go out was the power station, the last light of Ninjago before it was dark.

"Well, that's a big hint," Lloyd said. He turned to leave and rushed out the door.

* * *

Only a few seconds had gone by before the other Ninja had screeched their vehicles to halt at the power station where Lloyd waited for them briefly. They hopped out, with the exemption of Zane who wobbled and had to be led by Nya, and rushed up to him. "What took you so long?"

"Well, we had a little trouble in the city with some snakes and- wait how'd you know to come here?" Jay asked.

"It was easy," Lloyd smirked. "I saw the power go out and the last place was the station. If I didn't, I would've figured it out anyway."

"Nice work, and Lloyd," kai said as he put a hand on his shoulder, "we're sorry. We should've listened to you."

"And I should've stayed with you guys from the beginning," Lloyd replied. "I'm sorry, too."

Jay cut in between two. "Well, now that we've apologized, what's the plan, Temporary Sensei Lloyd?"

"In training," Kai clarified.

"Simple, we go in and kick some snake butt! Or whatever passes for a snake's butt, so how 'bout it?"

"Yeah!" they cheered in unison. Zane however cut rambling off facts on the first treadmill and potatoes.

"Yeah, he's still a little buggy," Nya said as she pushed the Nindroid inside the station. "Hopefully, he'll get better."

The Ninja walked through the door with Jay immediately starting to yell threats. "Alright, snakes! Give us back our friend and surrender now! And…no one's here," he mumbled in realization.

"Don't be too sure. Zane," Lloyd called over his shoulder, "can you detect any enemies?"

The Nindroid took a few moments to look around and scan before he locked onto an area near the generator. "Cranberries, corkscrew, squawk!" he shouted.

"Multiple targets five meters in!" Nya quickly said. The others stared at her with blank faces before she quickly explained. "After a while, you start to get understand the meaning and before you know it, you've learned his language."

From the around the corner, Vermillion Warriors came charging in. Each were fused with metal and objects to give themselves greater defense or appear bigger. On instinct, the Ninja pulled out their weapons and prepared for battle.

"We can do this, it's gonna take all of us!" the Green Ninja said, encouraging his team.

"Um, are you sure you mean all of us?" Nya asked as she pointed behind her. Zane was glitching again by walking repeatedly into a nearby generator of a smaller size.

"Oh, then, Zane, stay there and don't get into trouble."

He replied with a string of gibberish words just as the others charged. The Warriors threw barrels at them, successfully knocking down Cole and Kai in the process. Jay, Nya, and Lloyd were quick to jump and use their spinjitzu to charge into as many snakes that were in their path. They were reduced to their snake form after a few hits, but recovered faster than before, letting out a hissing laugh as they did.

"Uh, is it just me, or do these guys seem kinda stronger with all the metal they've got?" Kai asked.

"Nah, they're not so tough,"Cole answered. Behind him, however, a large, hulking Warrior stood over him and swatted him into Jay. "I take it back," he weakly said, "they're a bit more swole than last time."

"I really wish we had the rest of the team," Lloyd groaned. "Nya, are you sure Zane can't do _anything_ to help?"

"Sorry, but his only trick right now is to walk into a wall and send out bursts of energy that creates a strong magnetic force," she replied as she pointed toward Zane. Sure enough, he sent out a burst of electricity that came back as magnetic as any loose metal came flying towards.

It suddenly clicked in Lloyd's mind that maybe this could help, but it would need to be much bigger. "Nya, take Zane to the main turbine, because if he does that-"

"- he'll get rid of their armor!" she quickly finished before jumping by Zane's side. She wasted no time in pushing him towards the turbine, snake samurai close behind them.

The remaining Ninja quickly guarded them as Zane began sending out more energy. As they kept pushing the Warriors back, their weapons began flying out of their hands more and more.

"Nya, hurry up!" Jay shouted.

Instead, Zane had answered with a string of gibberish, with Nya translating, "We need more juice!"

Knowing what needed to be done, Jay shot a jolt of lightning at the turbine, greatly increasing the magnetic force. All at once, metal scraps, helmets, weapons, desks, and chairs came flying at them, having them to fall to the ground to avoid getting injured. Just as they lifted their heads off the ground, they came eye to eye with the now ordinary snakes that slithered away in fear.

"Yeah, you better run!" Jay shouted at them.

"Jay," Kai said as he got up, "snakes don't run, they slither."

"…don't push it."

* * *

The lights blinded the Ninja momentarily as they turned the power back on in the control room; there was some damage from the snakes but it was working fine after a touch up. Nya, now being able to see better, continued her work on Zane to fix him. With a final wire in place, she closed his hatch and stood back.

His eyes blinked back to life with their usual bright blue glow. "Hello, everyone," he said with a smile, "did I miss something?"

"Oh, it's good to see you back!" Jay happily said as he gave him a hug. "But long story short: you went all crazy, we fought the snakes, traced them back here and kicked snake butt! Or whatever passes for one."

"But most importantly, we've got power again," Lloyd said as he turned on the tv, switching the channel to the news.

"Oh, yeah, now that tv's back, things will be peaceful in Ninjago again," Jay joked.

"Don't be too sure," Cole said as he pointed the screen.

On it now was Gayle Gossip, behind what looked like to be an amusement park. _"This is Gayle Gossip with an emergency report. All day, we've been receiving news of snake samurai attacking Ninjago, and now their latest target is the Mega Monster Amusement Park where they're taking anything that's not nailed down, including the nails themselves!"_

"I can't believe it, we just scared them off and they're back at it."

"Maybe the blackouts were a distraction," Lloyd thought aloud. "What matters now is the people are in danger. Ninja let's head out!"

"Whatever you say, Temporary Sensei Lloyd!" Jay said as they started running out of the power station.

"You forgot the 'in training' part." Lloyd stopped just as they reached outside and turned back towards the group. "I almost forgot, Zane, can you pick up any trace of Maria being here?"

"Affirmative," he said, quickly picking up on a match around the corner of the station. Instead of something significant, he came back with a rock in his hand. "This rock has a faint trace of her elemental energy on it."

The others groaned and started heading back to the vehicles. "Seriously, Zane? A rock?" Cole asked. Maria couldn't possibly think a rock would help in catching metal snatching snakes."

Jay stopped for a moment as he thought about what Cole said. If these snakes were after metal, they would go after a place with more metal than any other. Only one particular place came to mind that made him froze: his parents junkyard.

He quickly turned back to where Zane found the rock; maybe there was a message, a clue. He carefully observed the ground and the wall of the station when he noticed an odd scratch that was curved smoothly under a caution poster. Jay tore off the poster and gasped as he saw the spirit symbol carved in.

With it all making sense, Jay ran out screaming. "Guys, they're heading towards my home! They've got Maria there with them!" He panted hard and realized they already took off towards the amusement park. There wasn't anytime left, so he hopped into his vehicle, and drove as fast as possible to his home.

'Mom, Dad, hold on,' he thought as he tightly clutched the wheel. 'Don't worry, Pinky, I'm coming for you, too.'

* * *

 **Hope you liked this chapter. As always, review, ask questions if you got any, love and treasure this story. I'm not done yet!**

 **Next chapter on Ninjago: Legend Reborn….**

 **A Line In The Sand**

 **Until then, God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good.**


	41. 40: A Line In The Sand

**Disclaimer: Ninjago doesn't belong to me, however I have ownership of all OCs, fan art, and anything else of the sort that appears in this story or on my Tumblr.**

 **Quick announcement, since I finally posted again,my views have skyrocketed and I reached 10,000 views on my story total! That is such a milestone, so let's make it happen again on the second book, coming soon, I swear. Also, to celebrate such an accomplishment, I posted a finalized art piece of the one and only Seraphina on my tumblr! It's should be viewable to you guys if you don't have a tumblr, my tumblr is CrystalliaWrtiting, so go check it out!**

 **Now roll the chapter!**

* * *

 **Chapter 40: A Line In The Sand**

"Could you be anymore slow?" Machia groaned as they trudged through the desert.

"I don't know, could you be anymore of a bully?" Maria shot back.

The two had trekked for miles to reach the junkyard and hated every minute of it. They couldn't stand each other anymore; they traded insults and purposely expressed their thoughts of what they hated about the other. Being dragged around made Maria tired, and all the dragging around had made Machia very annoyed. It was relieving sight for both when a glowing neon sign could be seen.

"We're here. We finally made it!" The Vermillion General almost cried at such a beautiful sight, but stopped the moment as she pushed the Pink Ninja towards the junkyard. "Now go deal with the inhabitants."

"I beg your pardon?" she asked.

"I received word that a pair of humans live here which is why I brought you," Machia explained while pointing a finger right in Maria's face. "You, pretty, pink princess, will go to those humans as though you are need of help."

"I am in need of help."

"Don't interrupt me!" Machia cleared her throat, continuing on. "You see, you are a human that looks like you went through a 'tough time,' and are in need of assistance. So I order you to walk up to those humans, distract them, and knock them out cold when they least expect it."

Maria gulped at the thought of this; she couldn't hurt Jay's parents, he'd freak. She quickly glanced over Machia's shoulder, hoping to see her friends rushing through the desert now to save her and protect the Walkers. Maybe Jay would even be at the front leading the charge and letting out a battle cry in anger. But no one was coming from what she saw.

"Machia, suppose if I don't do this…what would you do?" Maria bravely asked.

A dark look came over the snake's face as she replied, "I'm at my limit because I'm stuck with dealing with a brat like you. The only that would make me happy is to see you cry, and I'm well aware you care for your friends. Now put two and two together and rethink what you just asked."

"I'm going, I'm going!" The Pink Ninja quickly said as she whipped around and hobbled over to the junkyard. She stopped at the entrance and quietly encouraged herself. "Ok, Maria, just be careful of the security system and walk right up to them and say, 'Mr. And Mrs. Walker, you're in danger so I need you to leab.'"

Maria froze…that didn't sound right. She said leave, at least she thought she did. Paying close attention to what she sounded like, she repeated leave but it came out as "leab." She gasped and covered her mouth.

Was the numbness she felt all over spreading to her mouth? There wasn't time to stand around and worry, Machia would get impatient and come here herself. "Mr. And Mrs. Walker," she called out as she went into the junkyard, "are you here? It's Maria Sibey."

She stopped again, something was seriously wrong. "What's happening, why did I thou tho fuffy?" Maria gave out a shriek as it happened again as she realized her words were slurring and her mouth felt too heavy to form words.

A million thoughts rushed in her head as she wondered if this was a stroke or loss of circulation. It was too much that she hyperventilated and felt her heart pound like a drum in her chest. Everything in her view began dissolving and tumbling down on her. In what was sure to be her last moments, she closed her eyes and braced herself.

" _Maria,"_ a gentle voice called out.

"Is that you dad?" she asked in reply. "You're voice sounds a bit more feminine that I imagined."

" _No, Maria, you must open up your eyes,"_ the voice insisted.

Taking the voice's advice she opened her eyes and gasped. She stood in darkness with only the heavenly pink light of the figure before her breaking the shadows. Her long hair and dress flowed like flowers in a soft breeze. Her eyes sparkled like her own pair, and her smile was simple and sweet.

" _Hello, Maria,"_ Seraphina said in her soothing voice as she walked towards her. Maria could feel herself tremble as she got closer. She knelt down when she reached her so they were eye to eye. _"It's so nice to meet you."_

"It-uh-it'snicetomeetyou!"Maria blurted out as she held out her hand. Seraphina shook it with a chuckle, but Maria felt embarrassed by her reaction and quickly apologized. "I'm so, so, so, sorry, I've never talked with a past life of myself, that's why this whole situation…well it's weird. It's like I'm looking into a mirror but this version of me is prettier and dead…wait, _**am I dead?!"**_

She could feel herself hyperventilate again when she felt a cool presence on her shoulders. Seraphina had placed her hands on her, a serious spark was now in her eye. _"Maria, I'm here because you needed me desperately, so listen. Close your eyes and take a deep breath."_

"But I-" Maria began to protest.

" _Deep breath,"_ Seraphina repeated. Not wanting to argue with herself Maria closed her eyes and took a breath. _"That's good, you just need to think of something calming now, like your friends and family. But also, you must feel them as the way you do when they are near, think of who they are and the place they hold in your heart."_

"I don't understand, I can't-"

" _Please, just don't talk. Only think and feel."_

Maria began thinking of every little detail of each of her friends. She thought of Kai, his hotheaded attitude and intimidating appearance that opposed his warm personality. She heard Jay's laughter ringing through her ears, it was as loud as lightning, but it was also infectious and fun. Then there was Cole who was strong enough to lift a tree but gentle enough to dance gracefully without destroying something, and he was such a good cook.

Zane was an amazing cook, too; he was perfect in every way but also fallible and someone you could depend on to listen to you. She then began to remember Nya and how she was strong and smart. She always tried her hardest to be more amazing than she already was every day that went by, it was an admirable trait to her.

And then she finally remembered Lloyd. Sweet, lovable Lloyd was the perfect big brother; overprotective because he cared for her wellbeing, patient when she pushed herself to her limits, and, above all, loving. That wasn't hard see, he always ate her cooking even if it was a little mediocre at times, he loved listening to her going on about her favorite myths, and how he'd get so happy when she accomplished something after working so hard. Even the thought of Lloyd ruffling her hair when he had a chance made her feel happy.

" _Ok, Maria, you can open your eyes now."_

Feeling calmer than before, she opened her eyes and found herself in a field of forget me nots all around. The darkness shifted to a glow of a pink sunrise, clouds tinted with the last of night's blue drifted in the sky. "What happened to this place?"

" _You've achieved calm mind, but you have yet to master it,"_ Seraphina said as she sat down.

Maria sat next to her. "What's that?"

" _Calm mind is when you can control your emotions to soothe your own internal spirit energy. When you want to use your powers effectively, you must keep your emotions under control in order to fight properly as they are very dependent on you. In my time, I thought of those I loved in order to know what I was fighting for, my state of mind would then be reflected as something peaceful like this."_

"So when I do calm mind, I get a sunset and a field of flowers?" Maria asked.

" _Oh, yes,"_ Seraphina chuckled, but her face quickly fell. " _However, if I let my emotions go out of balance, it all turned to a wicked darkness instead of a peaceful, sacred night. I'd forget and then it'd be dark and cold. Then those horrible and wicked yellow eyes would appear and-"_ she stopped and turned her face away.

Despite how it still felt a bit odd to her, Maria placed a comforting hand on her back. "I get it, it's scary. This kinda explains earlier when I meditated, I saw some pretty scary things. Still, I can't believe I let myself go just because of those chains."

Seraphina straightened up and faced Maria again. _"Those chains didn't cause this, they only cancel out power and numb the body until the wearer is exhausted. It was your own fear and all you've been through that made you pass out and summon me."_

"Wait, you only came because I passed out after I freaked out?"

 _DRIP…DRIP…DRIP_

Droplets of water began falling faster and faster until it was down pouring on them. The sky began twisting away as it got darker. The ground below their feet began crumbling away as the plants withered away with it. "What's happening?!" Maria asked as she clutched onto the Spirit Queen.

" _You're waking up,"_ she explained while prying the Ninja off. " _When in deep meditation, external factors can affect your state of mind if strong enough, and this is strong enough. I have to go now."_

"Wait, you're leaving?"

" _I must."_

Seraphina turned to leave and rush off when Maria wrapped her arms around her waist to stop her. "Please, you can't go! I know I'm reincarnated from you and you live in me, I guess, but my whole life has been flipped because of you and Onryō. Please, I need someone to tell me and it might as well be you-err-me-or us…or-"

" _What_ _is it?"_

"Why am I the way I am?! You're so perfect from all I've been hearing about you, so why make _me_?!"

The Spirit Queen's eyes widened as she turned her whole body towards the trembling Ninja. Her eyes glistened with tears for a brief moment before she knelt down again and touched their foreheads together _. "It's because I-"_

Maria could feel herself get lighter as both of their tears dripped down her face. _"I wanted to be proud of something I did, for once in my life."_

* * *

"Sweetie…she's not waking up….is she…?"

Maria groaned as she felt something furry and wet dab on her forehead. Her eyes fluttered opened to Mrs. Walker dabbing her forehead with a washcloth. The concerned look on her face quickly changed to a smile. "Oh, honey, we're so glad you're awake!"

"Wha-what?" She sat up and got a look of her surroundings; it was crowded with furniture and some unidentifiable junk. A thick scent wafted through the air as though something was starting to rot. "Mrs. Walker, how'd I get in your trailer?"

"When heard a commotion outside and found you on the ground," Mr. Walker said, carrying a plated sandwich that he handed to her. She took it with gratitude and began scarfing it down. "You made such a ruckus, we got excited 'cause we thought our son came by to visit."

"Oh, but you are so lucky we knew it was you. You looked so pale and had such big dark circles under your eyes, and there was these things," Mrs. Walker held up the chains that had been restraining her.

Maria gasped at the sight and observed her wrists and ankles. She felt so happy just being able to move them more. Bursting with joy, she threw her arms around them and hugged them tightly. "Thank you so much, I'm free because of you!"

"It's no problem, dearie," Mrs. Walker chuckled. "Oh, but what about your friends?"

"What friends?" The Pink Ninja quickly jumped up and whipped around to the door. "Oh, yeah, my friends! They have to know I'm ok!"

She flung open the door and froze at the sight of Vermillion Warriors in the junkyard. It was an infestation of them; there was a snake carrying off metal,no matter how big or small, in every inch of the junkyard. As thought they sensed her, they all snapped their heads towards her direction, fixated on her with their piercing eyes. With a gulp and a chill going up and down her spine, she slowly backed up and closed the door, bolting it tightly.

"This. Is. Not. Good."

* * *

Jay increased the speed on his bike as he could see his home clearer with every mile gone by. He gripped the handles harder than ever when he recognized those little orange and red dots that we're moving around the scrap yard were indeed those snakes. The second the tip of his bike went past the entrance, he screeched it to a halt and jumped off, shooting jolts of lightning at his foes midair.

"Keep your fangs off my parents you darn, dirty snakes!" he shouted at them. His eyes darted back and forth until he saw dad driving in his line of sight on a forklift, running over every snake possible. The snake samurai were reduced to their multiple snake form, where his mom would rush in and sweep them away with her broom.

"Mom, dad, are you ok?" Jay asked as they gathered around him.

"We're fine, dear," his mother assured him. "Now we've got two Ninja protecting us."

Jay was about to question her when he heard his dad yell. He whipped around to see his father dumped on the ground by a snake samurai as it carried off the forklift. Grabbing his parents wrists he began ushering them to his bike. "Look, I've gotta get you guys out of here and some place safe, so hop on my bike and-"

He stopped short as the snakes had gotten to it before them and started breaking it down for parts. "Oh, come on!"

"Jay, duck!" Hearing that familiar voice shout to him, he and his parents dropped to the ground. Flying above their heads, a pink orb of spirit energy struck the snake samurai and smashed them into mere snakes. Jay turned his head back to the source and found Maria, panting hard and eyes watering.

"Maria..." he said stunned, walking towards her as it gradually turned into running. Both of their arms spread wide as he latched onto her the second they came in contact. "Where've you been, Pinky?!"

"I was so scared…" she said while trembling. "I offered to take the place of all those people they took, and they made me give them information about us or they were gonna go after you guys and g-gonna-"

"It's fine, Pinky," he while breaking the hug, "but we have to go. These things are tearing the place apart, it's not safe." He began pulling her away when she stopped and pulled him back, making him slip and fall in the sand.

"Jay, we can't, we have to stop them," she pleaded as she picked him up off the ground. "One of the generals, Machia, took me here to lure your parents out but I couldn't. She also mentioned they're building something, something _BIG,_ and sent General Blunck and Vermillion Warriors in her place when I didn't come back after your parents helped me out. I have to stop them from collecting enough metal to build…whatever it is."

"Ok, ok," Jay replied as he put on his hood. "But Lloyd's worried sick about you, and I still feel like he's gonna kill me because I'm partially to blame for your kidnapping. So stay close to me, got it?"

Maria slipped on her own hood with a firm look. "You got it."

The Vermillion Warriors locked onto them and began charging straight toward them. The two Ninja stood back to back before using their spinjitzu and shouting, "Ninja-go!"

They knocked down every warrior that tried to attack them, but failed. Jay and Maria stopped and began preparing to strike again when a slow clap was heard behind them. They whipped around to see the Vermillion General walk up to them with a smirk on his face. "How sweet," he hissed, "the little princess reunited with her friend and thinks she's gonna be free."

Maria began stomping towards him in anger when Jay stepped in between the two. "Ok, listen up, snake creep. First, Blunck and Vermillion Warriors: stupidest names ever. Second, I'm in hot water because you thought it was smart to kidnap my friend here, but when her brother hears about all the stuff you did, you're gonna wish a swarm of hawks got to you first!"

"Oh, please, her kidnapping was an accident, a terrible one. However, she has potential as a builder," he said as he pulled out Maria's neko-te from behind him.

"Hey, those are mine!"

"Indeed," Blunck said while flinging them at her feet. "You brought down one of my warriors with ease. Show me your power and prove your worth to me!"

The Pink Ninja quickly grabbed her weapon and slipped them on with a smirk on her face. "Oh, I'll show you, but fair warning, you've already lost making that stupid mistake!" She rapidly fired spirit orbs at Blunck, but he managed to dodge every one of them by dodging to the side.

Jay shot a burst of lightning and made direct contact with his attack. The General shook under the intensity of the attack, yet managed to break out of its hold and prepare to strike. Maria, too, began charging with her weapon at the ready when it all stopped.

Her thoughts raced as to what was happening, everything had began to move so slow. Her breath took a minute to leave her lips, even her lungs and heart felt as though they moved in slow motion to get that breath out. General Blunck was in midair flying towards her so slowly, but he didn't seemed phased at this. At the last second of this anomaly, Maria felt a wave of energy pass through her body, kick starting her systems back to normal speed.

Caught off guard, she fell into the sand and coughed as the dusty air entered her lungs. Jay quickly rushed to her side and helped her up. "You ok, Pinky?"

Ignoring his concerns, she asked, "Jay, that energy I felt just now….didn't you feel it, too?"

He was about to answer when a large truck came barreling by, Vermillion Warriors rushing to hop on and escape. Blunck rode atop as he pointed at Ed Walker, hissing, "Take the builder!"

The remaining snakes rushed towards him, causing Jay and Maria to jump in and defend him. They used their elemental powers to explode the warriors into snakes, making General Blunck frustrated. Giving up his idea, he pointed at Edna Walker and gave out his new command. "Take her, she may be a builder!

"The rest of you," he shouted at the Warriors that were locked in combat with the Ninja, "retrieve the princess, she knows too much! We can't afford her to escape!"

In a blinding rage, the two Ninja were dog piled by the Warriors, struggling to get out. The cold, slippery feeling of snake skin surrounded them, until the warriors all had a grip a Maria, carrying her away. "Jay, do something!" she shouted.

"Just stay calm!" he replied while running towards her. "I'm coming!" He couldn't afford to let her get taken away again, not after the first time.

She was within his reach when he stopped short at a familiar scream; a scream from his mother. His head snapped to the side as he saw her trapped within a giant metal claw. Using his airjitzu, he quickly flew up to the claw and tried to pry it open, but was suddenly attacked by nearby Vermillion. The loosened his grip, little by little until he lost it and fell.

Not giving up, he tried again after Maria, running towards the truck. She squirmed and struggled under the force of all the snakes that subdued her. They didn't even try to stop him, rather they flashed wicked smiles at his attempt. Feeling his legs getting exhausted, Jay summoned all the strength he had left and jumped.

He stretched his hand out the last second, just managing to grab the skirt of her gi until a part of it ripped, leaving him to tumble in the dust.

"Hang on, kid!" Jay shouted as he quickly stood up. "I'll form my dragon, I'll fly, I'll- I-" he tried thinking of his dragon, using every ounce of him to summon it, but it wouldn't work. "I can't do it…" he said under his breath, "I'm too freaked out…"

He looked into the endless Sand of Sea, a trail of dust following the truck. He failed... he had lost his friend again along with his own mother.

And it was all fault.

* * *

 **Question time!**

 **Guest asks:** **Did your hear that in new season will be a princess of Ninjago?**

 **Answer: Yup, and I think it's a neat idea. But just so we're clear, I technically came up with it first, so it's copyrighted. (;**

 **Whelp, I think it's safe to say we can end it here. We gotta keep moving, also that DotD chapter?**

 **Well, I tweaked the plot a bit to make it a short Christmas special chapter, but it has the same concepts. I give you guys more backstory and introduce an important character to you, so that's my late Christmas gift to you guys!**

 **Next chapter on Ninjago: Legend Reborn…**

 **The King's Promise**

 **Until then, God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good.**

 **Hope you all had a Merry Christmas, and I hope you have a great 2018!**


	42. 41: The King's Promise

**Disclaimer: Look, it's 2018, I think we get the gist that I don't have ownership rights over any of this unless it's an OC or fan art that I post on my tumblr, m'kay?**

 **Hello, my lovelies!**

 **Hope 2017 was a good year for you, it not, then make 2018** _ **EPIC!**_

 **Now, an explanation is in order for this chapter. Ideally, the HoT chapters would be done and this chapter would appear as a Christmas special( taking place of a DotD chapter) for the season, and then the final chapters of the book. However due to scheduling, I'm squeezing this between the HoT chapter to get this out of the way and because the post Christmas and New Years celebrating feels are dwindling.**

 **So keep in mind Sensei Wu will not appear as canon to HoT, Maya and Ray are here but will not appear, and a new and important OC of mine is making an appearance. If you wanna put this chapter on hold and wait until the rest of the HoT chapters are done, that's fine. You guys do you since can't do anyone else.**

 **Now, buckle in, cause here we go!**

* * *

 **Chapter 41: The King's Promise**

"Lloyd, are you awake?" Maria asked as she poked his sleeping face. "Lloyd, can you hear me?"

"Just give me five more minutes," he mumbled while putting his pillow over his head to block her out. "You can wait a little longer to open your presents."

"What're you talking about? It's not Christmas yet."

Fully annoyed, Lloyd pulled his bed sheets completely over his body and groaned. "Then wake me up when it is. I need to catch up on my sleep after all the holiday madness."

Determined to get him out of bed, Maria did one of the gutsiest things she'd ever done. She managed to get a tight grip on his sheets, from the bed skirt to the comforter, and pulled it out from under him and fling it across the room. Lloyd, being determined as he was to resume sleeping, had kept a strong grip as well, resulting in him getting thrown with all the layers of bedding. What was to happen next was quite foreseeable as that wad of bedding containing the Green Ninja hit the wall with a loud _thud._

Lloyd rose up slowly, each sheet falling off revealing his angered face more and more. He took a deep breath in, his chest puffing out slightly in doing, ready to shout. "Mari-!"

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm so, so, so, _sorry_!" Maria had flung herself at Lloyd and hugged his arm tightly as she pleaded for forgiveness. "Please, forgive me, Sensei!"

A calm feeling came over Lloyd as he sighed and pried his sister off his arm. "I told you, you don't have to call me 'Sensei' or 'Sensei Lloyd.' Second, what's gotten into you today? You've never acted so…rough before."

The Pink Ninja fiddled with her hands as she stared at her feet. "Well…things are kinda messed up now that Wu's gone, Kai and Nya's parents won't be back until tomorrow for Christmas, and Claire's finally coming back from fishing with her dad. I'm kinda embarrassed at what I did because…until then, we have just the seven of us for Christmas, so it's kinda lonely, you know?"

"But its not," Lloyd said, "we've got my mom, Dareth and Ronin are nearby, and it doesn't matter if it ends up being just the seven of us. What matters is we're together, right?"

"I suppose."

"Good, now we gotta make a few stops in the city later today. Maybe, if we have time, we can see Santa."

Maria snapped her head up on that word, her eyes sparkling with joy. "SANTA?! _REALLY?!_ "

"Really," Lloyd smiled. "We just got wake up the others-"

" _GUYS, WAKE UP!"_ Maria shouted as she sprinted out the door and up and down the hallway. " _WAKE UP, WE'RE GONNA SEE SANTA!"_

"I think I unleashed something bad," Lloyd muttered to himself.

* * *

The snow fell from the sky endlessly, making it colder and colder. But it didn't stop the children rushing up to toy stores and press their faces up against the glass, gawking of what could be their presents the next morning. It certainly wouldn't stop all the last minute shoppers, running over each other to pick up gifts or food for a Christmas feast. But all around, there was cheer and joy on every corner and at every turn.

The Ninja had bundled themselves up in order to survive the harsh conditions. They walked down to the center of the city as Zane listed off miscellaneous items needed for their dinner tonight. As Christmas was, indeed, very near, a Santa was at every turn, ringing his bell in hopes people would give even a few coins for charity. And at every Santa they passed, Maria had practically gotten in their faces, making them nervous or very scared.

"By my calculations, if we divide the list by five items per group of two, we should have all we need within an hour," Zane explained to the group.

Jay raised his hand and asked, "Question: why do we need to be in groups of two? Also, why an hour? That's gonna take forever and I can't handle being out here in this madness for that long."

"I took in account the estimated number of rushing shoppers, as well as the severity of their 'shopping fever' on a scale of one to ten."

Cole gave him a look in disbelief. "Zane, buddy, I don't normally argue with a nindroid's logic, but I doubt your logic. Just because the holidays are closing in, doesn't mean people lose their common sense over a Christmas ham or flashy gift."

"Move!" an old lady screamed as she ran past the group with her shopping cart, and ran over Cole's foot in the process. The Earth Ninja fell back and held it, groaning and moaning at the pain.

"I take it back, that lady's a solid ten!"

"As I was saying," Zane continued as Kai and Nya helped Cole up, "I shall send a text message to each group and its members to keep them from forgetting an item."

"Hate to interrupt," Kai interrupted, "but you said the plan was to go out in groups of _two._ Problem is that there's _seven_ of _us."_

"I call dibs on Cole!" Jay shouted.

"Hey, I thought you'd wanna be in a group with me," Nya questioned.

"I need the extra muscle for safety."

"Well, I was supposed to meet up with Dareth in a bit at the mall," said Maria. "I can go with him for protection and then we have an even number and no one goes alone."

Kai arched an eyebrow. "And why would you think Dareth would be able to protect you?"

Maria shrugged. "He's the official Brown Ninja, he's gotta have skill to achieve that."

"Ok, better idea," Lloyd spoke up, "I'll go with Zane, Kai goes with Nya, Cole and Jay will take Maria until she finds Dareth. Then we'll all meet back here and go home to prepare for tonight. Everybody agree?"

"Agreed," the others replied together.

Zane held up his phone and quickly began typing. "I'm typing up the list as I speak. Each pair should receive it-"

 **DING! BUZZ,BUZZ!**

"-now," he said, as everyone responded to their phones going off. They looked it over before forming their pairs and heading off.

* * *

"Do you see him yet?"

"For the third time, Cole, not yet."

Like the rest of the city, the mall was jam packed and quite dangerous. People rushing in and out of stores, and the lines of children waiting to see Santa Claus. Jay had run off to use the bathroom, allowing Cole and Maria to try and find Dareth in the rampaging sea of shoppers.

"How can you not find him?" Cole asked. "He's a guy in brown, always strutting and flashing a smile, and has big hair."

"I just can't, Cole," she sighed with exhaustion. "I'm really trying, but everything's crazy in here with all these people waiting just to see Santa."

"Oh, by the way, why'd you keep staring at all those guys dressed as him?"

Maria audibly gulped. The color from her face drained as she went pale. A lump was in her throat as she shakily turned to face Cole. "Wh-wh-what'd ya mean? I wasn't staring, I was…uh… I was-"

"We all saw it, kid," he spoke while crossing his arms. "You stared at them like you wanted to smack 'em or something. So what's the deal? You don't actually believe in-"

"Hey, Cole!" a familiar voice shouted from behind, interrupting their conversation. The two turned to see Jay running up to them with a plastic bag in his hand. "You won't believe what I found!"

"I'd prefer it that whatever happened to you in the bathroom, stays in there, Jay," Maria begged, a look of disgust coming across her face.

"Not what I meant," he sharply replied. "On my way here, I walked by a shop that had one of our items on sale!" He quickly rummaged through the bag and held up a ham. "I got the hickory honey ham, so we can cross that off our list!"

"Dude, we're having chicken for dinner."

Jay's face fell as he dropped the ham. "WHAT?! You mean I raced against an old man, got bit by his dentures," he shouted as he pulled back his sleeve, revealing a mark on his wrist, "and came back here after getting pushed into a wall three times for…for _nothing?!"_

Cole shrugged. "You should've read the list better."

"I read it over and over! I could read it back in my sleep! And I'll have you know, that geezer was ready to run over my foot with his wheelchair!"

"Uh, guys, I could find Dareth while you two sort this out," Maria suggested.

But her suggestion fell on deaf ears as the two continued to "calmly sort out" the issue. She sighed and went off towards the center of the mall. Despite it being the place where kids lined up to meet and sit on the knee of Santa and get a cheesy picture, there wasn't as much madness as the rest of the place. The only issue was squeezing through lines of parents and their kids, flashing glares at what could possibly be a line jumper.

She settled near a restroom close to the gated area of the big man in red and attempted to contact Dareth. He hadn't responded to her previous messages, it'd probably be best to actually call him.

"Mommy, will Santa give me everything I asked if I'm really good?"

The voice of a little girl made Maria snap her head up and stare at her and her mother as they past the gated area. Her mother smiled at her daughter in reply. "Of course, honey. But you know, there are somethings even he can't bring you."

Maria felt something familiar come across her mind, a faded memory, as she heard those words. She felt her heart drop as she remembered that scene and frowned. "Sounds familiar," she whispered to herself, "Santa can't bring you everything you wish for."

"What sounds familiar?" a voice whispered in her ear. She jumped and let out a squeak as she struggled to gain control of her shaking body again. The Pink Ninja turned and let out a sigh of relief as it was only Dareth. "Merry Christmas, Pink Lady!" he joyfully said.

"Merry Christmas, Dareth," she replied. "I was just…" Her eyes scanned the surrounding area until she could find an answer to his previous question. She found it in the cheap man dressed as Santa and quickly replied. "I was just thinking about Christmas back at my home and how we'd get to meet Santa!"

"Oh, I don't buy that," he waved off. "Everyone knows the real Santa is still in his workshop getting ready, and all these guys are fakes and lie to kids. But forget them, we've got shopping to do!" He grabbed her arm and began pulling her towards the elevator, just as a group of people got in.

"You're right, we've got work to do!" she replied as they stepped in. Just as the doors began to close, she caught a final glimpse of a kid getting on Santa's lap and clenched her fist. 'But you're not right, Dareth,' she thought to herself.

'You're not right because…I met _him_ once, the real one.'

* * *

"Dareth, I still say we bought a little too much." Maria struggled to carry the bags she had on her arms as they weighed her down. She offered to carry half, but it was still too much, and made it more difficult for her to reach the exit. "Maybe, we didn't have to so much of each item."

"What're you talking about?" he replied as he walked by her. "It's the holidays, you have to be prepared if you want to have a happy one."

"Well, I suppose," she said, finally getting out and past the doors. A cold wind hit her face, making her shiver and sniffle. "I think it dropped a few degrees since this afternoon."

 **BUZZ, BUZZ!**

She felt her phone vibrate in her pocket and instinctively reached for it to see what caused it to go off. It was an text from Lloyd, so she set down the bags and opened it up.

 _The weather said it's getting colder. Instead of waiting around for each other in the center, head home so you don't freeze. Stay warm and stay safe!_

Maria nearly dropped her phone. This was her chance, to finally break away. Quickly, she gathered up the bags and shoved them in Dareth's arms. "I gotta pick up something, so just head back to the temple with Ronin or something."

"Hey, wait a minute, Pink Lady," he started to protest. But Maria had already began sprinting down the icy sidewalk. Not many people were on the streets now, giving her a chance to run as wildly as she could. She lost her footing as she turned a corner and bumped in someone, falling to the ground.

She rubbed her head in pain as a voice asked, "Ria?"

Maria looked up and gasped at the figure in the green parka. She hopped up with her arms open, flinging them around her friend as she squealed in joy, "C.C., I missed you!"

"I missed you, too," Claire replied, breaking the hug. "So what's been going on with you? Been partying since I left for for fishing season?"

Maria casually explained, "Oh, I got possessed by a demon that tried to kill my friends and me, and I got kidnapped by enemy forces that exploited me of our secrets to hurt them. My Sensei may forever be lost in time, too. But Lloyd and I are official brother and sister now!"

"Lucky you. The most exciting thing that happened to me was that my dad got attacked by one of the most fearsome fish in the sea!"

"A shark?"

"No, a baby dolphin," Claire deadpanned. "You know my dad puts miles of ocean between him and the tiniest shark close by. Of course my scaredy cat dad could only be attacked by the next best thing."

"Fascinating, but I gotta go," the Pink Ninja said as she hurried off.

"It's been 10 years, right?" Claire's voice cut through the silent, cold night, halting the Ninja in her rush. She nodded in reply without looking back, and heard her friend's chuckle. "Thought so, you seemed to be rushing a bit…but do you actually think he'll come?"

"10 years ago, I sat on his lap and asked for something that would make my life better," Maria uttered with a quiver in her voice. She took in a deep breath and let her voice regain strength. "I made him promise and I've been looking at a bunch of fakes all night until I found him. I'll wait all night in the cold if I have to."

"Just like you tried last time?"

"No," she said as she whipped around. She had a serious look on her face as she looked her friend in the eye and declared, "It won't be like last time, because nothing will stop me until I find him."

Claire just smiled and winked. "Then go get him, Ria."

* * *

Jay and Cole had just walked in as Zane began cooking the Christmas dinner. The others had began either setting the table or cleaning up a bit and had noticed the two walking in. "Glad to see you two make it back," said Nya. "Did you get everything?"

"Everything," Jay tiredly said as he set his bags on the kitchen counter, "and an extra ham. Don't ask."

"Ok," Kai said, clearly confused. "Well, I guess that just leaves Maria and we're good."

"Speaking of which, didn't you guys give her ride up here?" Lloyd asked. "You didn't forget she can't fly yet, right?"

"Of course we didn't," said Cole with nervous chuckle. "We just kinda…made a rope ladder for her to get up here."

"You left without her?"

"She's not in trouble," Jay chimed in. "We left her with Dareth…he's not exactly the best choice of a bodyguard, but she's capable of defending herself. What's the worst that could happen to her?"

 **BANG! BANG! BANG!**

The echoing sound of knocking at the main door got their attention as they all ran out to the entryway to see who it was. They were almost halfway down the steps when a girl in a green parka had kicked the door open and trudged inside. As she moved the bags a bit to reveal her face, Jay gulped and hid in the back slightly, everyone else just tensed up a little when they realized who it was.

"Sup, Ninja?" Claire shouted with her arms full of grocery bags. "Man, nice place you guys got," she commented as she set the bags on the floor. "Ria told me you guys moved in a new place, but man, she didn't describe it as good as it is."

"Claire, why are you here carrying in our food?" Nya asked.

"I was coming up to see you guys anyway, but I ran into what's-his-face…uh, Darin?"

"You mean Dareth," Lloyd said.

"Nah, I don't think so," Claire mumbled. "Anyway, he was too scared to come up here, so I took over for the guy."

"Good to know, now where's my sister?"

Claire just shrugged and headed up the stairs. "So what do you have to eat?"

"Are you sure you don't know where she is?" he called up to her.

"NOPE!"

"Should we keep an eye on her?" Kai asked.

"Just leave her, she won't harm anything," Lloyd said. "We've got more important things to worry about, Maria's still out there and it's getting colder. Jay, Cole," the Green Ninja locked on them, making them shake, "you were the last ones to see her before she left. Did she act differently or did you guys say something to her?"

"I just showed her a bite mark I got from an old guy," Jay explained. Everyone shot him a look to which he returned a dark look. "I already said before not to ask."

"Moving on," Cole said aloud, "I just asked her why she kept staring at every guy we passed that was in a Santa costume. She kept avoiding the question like she was scared or embarrassed of something."

"Of course," Lloyd groaned. "I promised her we'd see him, she was so excited. I must've given her the impression we weren't when I sent out that message for everyone to head here because of the weather getting worse."

Cole scoffed at Lloyd's statement. "She can't be serious, everyone knows Santa doesn't-"

"Don't say that!" Jay screamed as he flung his hand to Cole's mouth. However, the force was too great, he ended up accidentally smacking him in the mouth. "Sorry," he whimpered, "but you can't go around saying that, that… _thing_! Where's your childhood?!"

"Cole has a point," Zane agreed. "A man flying to every household to deliver presents in one night seems impossible. Not to mention breaking and entering is illegal."

Kai rolled his eyes and explained, "Zane, we do that on a regular basis. We're Ninja."

"Look the point is, something drove her off," Lloyd said aloud, gaining everyone's attention.

"Yeah, Cole did," Jay accused.

"No, I didn't!"

"Yeah, you did!"

"Actually, this has nothing to do with any of you." Claire's voice cut through the tension as she walked back down the stairs, a half eaten ham in her hand. "Normally, I wouldn't betray Ria's trust and break word of the real reason behind her disappearing, but I can already see this turning into a fight amongst you guys. So how about I tell you the real reason, and then we go check up on her?"

Murmurs of agreement were heard from then until Lloyd confirmed, "Alright, tell us the real reason."

Claire sat down on the steps and thought for a moment. "Let's see, it was 10 years ago back at Tranquilville's market. Every Christmas, they'd slap some loser in a suit that reeked of onions and turnips and have him take pictures with the kids as Santa. But when we went 10 years ago, Ria claims she met the real Santa Claus."

Cole began to interrupt. "But that's imposs-"

"Shut it, you nonbeliever!" Claire snapped at him, making him flinch. She cleared her throat and continued on. "Now, Ria was in the very back when we went, but he saw her and pulled her to the front and on his lap out of all those kids. After she told him what she wanted, he promised her he'd fulfill that wish as best as he could, but it would take 10 years for it to be done.

"Now, in case you guys didn't realize, Ria is pretty serious about keeping promises. So she's been waiting all day to go out and find him. I wouldn't be surprised if she's out on some bench waiting, just in case he's ready early. The first time she waited like this was her last, her mom was so worried."

"And now I'm worried." Lloyd headed for the door with others following behind him. He stopped as he opened the door and looked back at Claire. "By the way, what convinced you she did meet the real Santa?"

She sighed and walked up to him, putting a hand on his shoulder in comfort. "Look, I was concerned too when I heard she stayed out in the cold. I even offered to give her what she asked for, but I realized, maybe it is the real big guy, after hearing what she wanted."

"Well, what was it?" Lloyd asked.

"Her dad."

* * *

" _Can you see him, Ria?" Claire shouted over the noise of screaming kids. Maria sat on her shoulders as she tried to get a good look over the crowd of where Santa was gonna be. The open air market was busy and cold, but crowds of kids lined up and dragged their parents to see him. It was a struggle to keep a spot over all the pushing and shoving._

" _Not yet, but I know he's almost here!" she called back down. She was already in awe at just the sight of where he would be sitting. A golden regal chair, with an archway dusted with fake snow that had paper snowflakes dangle from it. It was simple, but it looked fit for a king._

" _Ria," Claire shakily said, "I'm loosing my grip!" She wobbled back and forth until she lost her footing and fell. Maria fell on top of whatever kids she had landed on and was pushed to the back and onto the ground._

" _Wait, my friend is up there!" she cried out, hopping as high as she could. "Please, let me through! I think she might be hurt!"_

 _A mother and her two children, one boy and one girl, turned back as they heard her. The mother showed signs of disgust as she scolded her. "Little girl, you should be more presentable when meeting a man like Santa, instead of wearing all that makeup and hairspray."_

 _Feeling both embarrassed and scared, Maria had her head lowered as her face began turning beet red. "I-I-I- don't wear makeup or hairspray," she trembled. "Mama tells me my lips are 'defined' and my hair… I think the word was 'voluminous.'"_

" _I think the word for you is ugly!" the boy laughed, earning the attention of surrounding parents and kids._

" _Look at her mouth, Mother!" the girl joined in. "It's like a pig's lips!"_

 _Maria had covered her ears and shut her eyes as tight as she could. Mama wasn't around to help and C.C. was far away. All she could do was whimpered and ignore any laughter, any mean words that came across her mind. Just for a moment, she dared and opened her eyes to see a large shadow._

 _She gasped as her eyes widened to man in red, with a long white beard and jolly smile. He kneeled down and offered her a hand. "Hello there, little princess," he warmly said. "Have you come to see me?"_

 _She felt all eyes were on her, waiting for a response. She quickly took his hand and got up, holding on to his white gloved hand. "Yes, sir, but I'm not a princess. Princesses are kind of…well, they don't do much."_

" _Because they don't know what they're capable of as a person," he answered. He led her up to the throne, making her smile as he continued on. "They're not bad, they just have responsibilities and forget to relax and tend to the other half of who they are. They lose belief in their whole selves; it's quite sad, truthfully."_

 _He stopped as he sat down before taking her and setting her on his lap. "Santa, are you a king?" she questioned._

 _He let out a joyful laugh, it was like music ringing through her ears. "I suppose I'm King of the North, but not really. Now, what would you like for Christmas, Maria Psyche?"_

" _You know my name?" she gasped. "No one else calls me that, except for Claire, her dad, and my mama. Anyways, I want-" Maria paused for a moment and leaned in to his ear to whisper, "I want my dad to come back."_

 _Santa pulled back with a stunned look on his face. He whispered back, "Is he gone for a job or trip?" When Maria shook her head, he sighed and pulled her in. "Now, Maria, do you understand that your father is in a good and safe place, always watching over you and loving you?"_

" _Yeah, but," she quietly whimpered, "Mama's been upset, and I don't know why. You give stuff to kids who are good, and I've really tried. All I want is Papa to come home to stay, then Mama will be happy. I just don't know who he is, I don't know what's it's like to have a dad."_

 _The King rubbed his chin as he thought for a moment. Suddenly, his eyes twinkled, as though he had an idea. "How about you wait 10 years and I'll have your present? What you want is very hard to do, but not impossible."_

" _10 years?" she softly exclaimed. "Well, ok, if you need time I'll wait. And I'll be ready if you get done early!" She gave him a quick hug before jumping off with a skip in her step. She found Claire waiting for her at the front._

" _So what'd you ask for?" she questioned._

" _You'll have to wait," Maria winked._

" _How long?"_

" _10 years!"_

* * *

Maria suddenly sat up from her sleep and sneezed, snot dripping from her nose. She wiped it away and fully opened her eyes to see the other Ninja with disgusted looks on their faces. "Guys? How'd you find me?"

"Claire said you'd probably be on a bench, possibly covered in snow, and you are," Zane explained. Maria quickly observed herself and indeed she'd fallen asleep long enough for snow to pile up on her.

"She told us everything, and now we're going home." Lloyd snatched her wrist and began dragging her away.

She dug her heels in the snowy ground and shouted, "I'm not going anywhere! I'm staying right here!"

"Come on, you're freezing," Nya said. "You can't honestly be willing to stay out here. It's in the negatives and it's almost midnight."

"Besides, you can't guarantee Santa will find you out here," Cole added on. "It's getting worse by the second."

Lloyd continued to pull her away. "It's settled, we have to go home."

"But I need to do this!" She pulled back harder, resulting in the two doing tug of war with each other.

"Do what? You need to freeze? Santa's not coming and neither is your dad, you have to move on!" he cried out.

"I need to know what it feels like!"

The Green Ninja let go and looked in her eyes. "What do you mean, 'know what it feels like?'"

Maria felt tears start to well up in her eyes. "Each of you had a dad in some way, or at least remember what's it's like to have someone be there when you're mom couldn't be there. You know how it feels to have someone else guide you and protect you, teach you right from wrong, support you. I don't have that luxury, I only had my mom and it was harder to for both of us to be happy as I got older."

She couldn't hold hate tears back anymore, instead, she let them flow freely as her voice cracked. "I never got to be held by him or have him protect me when I got picked on. Everyone says he's not gone and watches over me, but it's not enough anymore. I just need my dad, I need- I need-" Maria stopped and broke out into a fit of sobs, struggling to wipe away the tears.

She trembled and shook from the cold tears freezing up in the icy wind. She managed to stop when she felt warmth around her, and opened her eyes. Her friends had pulled her in a group hug and held each other tightly. In the small space they had, Lloyd faced her and spoke, "I'm not sure if he will come, but we're gonna stay with you all night if we have to."

"I'm with Lloyd," Kai agreed, "there's nothing better than staying out in the cold night in a group on Christmas Eve."

"Are you being sarcastic?" Zane asked.

"Of course he is," Nya answered. "But it's worth freezing."

"Because we're together?" Maria asked.

"Yeah, because we're together, that's what counts," Lloyd whispered, hugging her tighter.

 **JING-JING-JING! JING-JING-JING!**

Jay popped his head out from the group and said, "Guys, I think I'm hearing the ringing again."

"Guess again!" a cheery voice bellowed around them. They broke apart to see where that sound came from when the winds whipped around in front of them. They twisted and tightened until a figure emerged, dressed in red with a large bag at his feet. "Merry Christmas, Ninja!" Santa joyfully shouted.

They were in shock until Jay ran up screaming, "SANTA!" He jumped up and hugged the giant man around his neck, his feet dangling as he pure joy was on his face. "I love you, Santa!" he whispered in a hushed voice.

"I remember you," Santa replied unamused, plucking Jay off and setting him on the ground. "You set up a net to catch me when I went to get my milk and cookies."

The Lightning Ninja nervously chuckled as he rubbed the back of his head. "Well- I was- I was a kid back then. All reckless and not thinking clearly about things, ya know?"

"It was last year."

"Oh, right" whimpered Jay. "That aside, have I been good enough?"

"You've all been very good," he responded as he pulled a list out from his pocket. "Kai and Nya have been good, Zane's doing well, Lloyd's made a huge improvement since he became a Ninja. And then there's Cole Bucket," he stopped as he gave the Earth Ninja a hard stare.

Cole cowered down and gave a small wave. "Hello, sir. I can explain-"

Santa raised a hand to silence him. "There's no need, you were just a child. Your father told you the 'Santa doesn't exists lie' to get your mind focused on dancing." He glanced over his list one last time and smiled as he walked over to Maria and said, "And, of course, you've been really good these past 10 Christmases, little princess."

She sniffled before standing on her toes, reaching to up to hug him as tight as she could. "I knew you would come, you promised me. But you know," she chuckled as she looked up at him, "you don't have to call me little princess anymore."

"Oh, but I do," he insisted. "I have to be respectful to Seraphina's successor and the new Spirit Princess."

Everything went silent as Maria broke the hug and walked backwards. Her eyes were wide as she tried to form words. "You-you know… I'm not- th- that we- spirits, gems and wha…?"

"Ninja, allow me to formerly introduce myself. You know me as Santa Claus, but my real name is Nikos; Great Elder of the North and embodiment of belief."

The Ninja's eyes went wide, some letting out squeaks as they tried to speak. "Is something wrong?" Nikos asked, snapping them out of their state. "Have you not heard of the Great Elders? Have you at least met with Cliona?"

"Well, yeah but," Nya said, "she-she didn't...she only introduced herself as one. We didn't think it was a group. Doesn't this also mean you were at the war?"

"Well, of course,"he replied. "The Great Elders is a group of four of the most powerful embodiment spirits formed after the first war, watching over the four main regions of this land from demons and other threats. I watch the north, Cliona watches the west in the Hybrid Village, the Waira, Basil, watches the east from the Tree of Wisdom. And all of the south is under the rule of Seraphina as her kingdom. Except it all belongs to Maria now."

"Me?" she timidly asked, all eyes on her. "So I protect and rule all of southern Ninjago…that's so awesome!"

"Lucky," Jay grumbled, "how come you get a kingdom for Christmas?"

"Be at ease," Nikos chuckled while grabbing his bag, "I've left gifts for each of you under your tree, except for one." He reached around in his bag until he pulled out a small, square shaped present wrapped in gold paper with a matching bow. "I believed it would be best to hand this one in person to Maria herself."

Maria quickly snatched it up and stared at it, hands trembling at the sight of it. "I can't believe it, I know my dad's not wrapped in here but…what is it?"

"A gift that will fulfill your true wish: how it would feel if your father were alive." The colds winds surrounded him, secluding his bright red robe until it blended with the snow and he was no more.

"Well don't keep us in suspense, open it," Nya urged.

The Pink Ninja began tearing away each layer, crowded by the others to see what it was. Finally, she had ripped the last layer of wrapping paper away as an old purple cloth folded nicely was found inside. "This is my original baby blanket," Maria gasped as she held it up. "It was ruined when I was little, so my mom took whatever was salvageable to make my scarf."

"That's it? How does this fulfill your wish?" Kai asked.

"Hang on, I feel something hard," Maria replied, as she unfolded it. "I think he wrapped something in it."

She gently pulled away the blanket to uncover a little brown leather book, a red bookmark sticking out from the pages it held in place. She opened it up to the marked entry and began silently reading.

 _January 6, 2000_

 _Elise agrees with me, it's time we start a new chapter in our life. I still can't believe that I could be a father soon. Me! Well, no doubt that when our son or daughter comes, they'll take after the stubbornness I have. Headstrong and rebellious. In fact, I've already got two names that I think will match that perfectly; Jack for a boy, and Maria for a girl._

 _If the kid does take after me, I really do want them to be a rebel. Not a punk, but a selfless person who will do anything for the wellbeing of others, especially family. I know I would do anything for my kid. I'd do anything to keep them smiling and not let them carry a single burden on their shoulders. I do that for Elise everyday, even now. Truth be told, I haven't been feeling so hot lately. The guys on the force say I should go to some fancy hospital and get help, but I know that's not in the budget. I know Elise wants things in life that are nice, but she doesn't beg or nag for them. So I'm willing to get something really great for her._

 _I may not have enough money in my pocket to build a fancy garden pond or invest in a bigger library, but we have each other. That should be enough to raise a nice kid, even if I do pass away. Ellie will have someone else to take care of her and find a reason to move on and live her life. I know I'm gonna sound dramatic, but if this is my last entry, then I want you to read this to our little kid, Ellie._

 _Whenever it downpours rain and soaks you to the bone, I'm sharing your sorrow._

 _When a thunderbolt strikes, I'm furious at who hurt my child and wife._

 _When the stars sparkle at night in your eyes, I'm wishing you a better tomorrow._

 _After the storm has ended, and a warm ray of light shines through,_

 _Look close to see me smiling at you._

 _No matter where I am, no matter where you are,_

 _I'm close to you, my child, never far,_

 _For I love you, not in death, but in my eternal life._

 _~ Christopher Psyche_

Maria closed the diary and took in a deep breath. "It all makes sense."

"What does?" Lloyd questioned. "What did you read?"

"This is my dad's journal," she explained. "He did everything for my mom to make her happy, but he got sick, so he gave her the greatest thing she could have: me. And he would've done _anything_ to support both of us if he was still around, he put others before his own wellbeing like I do."

"And that granted your wish how?" Jay asked.

"…I am my dad. We're so similar, it'd be like there were two of me at my house if he was alive. But I get it," she smiled, "my dad and I are so alike that I just had to be my own dad if I wanted to know what it'd feel like if he was around. I just have to be…well, me."

"Are you satisfied with that answer?" Zane asked.

"I am," she replied.

"Then let's head home," Lloyd suggested. The others murmured in agreement and began summoning their dragons to fly back to the temple. Maria prepared to hop onto Lloyd's dragon when he stopped her. "So after all that, you're really happy?"

"What'd ya mean?" she questioned.

"You originally said you wanted your dad to come back physically. Instead, after almost freezing in the cold twice, you learn you just have to be you since your dad is always with you. After all those years waiting, you only got his diary with his last written words, and you really feel happy?"

Maria offered a sweet simple smile and asked, "Wouldn't you?"

* * *

 **That's a wrap, people!**

 **So remember, this chronologically takes place after all the Hands of Time chapters have been written, just in case there's confusion.**

 **Next chapter on Ninjago: Legend Reborn…**

 **The Attack**

 **Until then, God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good.**


	43. 42: The Attack

**Disclaimer: What did I just say last chapter? I don't own Ninjago, just the OC's and art I put on my tumblr. Geez, you guys forget easily. -_-**

 **It's that time! I was gonna post earlier than this, but exams came up and I aced them!**

 **Now on with the chapter!**

* * *

 **Chapter 42: The Attack**

"You _lost_ the Time Blade!" Acronix paced.

"We _had_ the Time Blade and now we do not have the Time Blade," Krux fumed. "And what's worse, you lost the girl, recovered her without covering her sight, allowing her to see where our base is, and brought her back without those chains!"

"I have a name," Maria chimed in, boredom in her voice. "I've only told you at least 30 times." She laid back in her cage and yawned. It was quite tiresome being kidnapped, and she was just about done with this whole thing.

Raggmunk and Blunck managed to bring her to the swamp and lock her in a cage before heading off to retrieve one of the Time Blades, but based on the current conversation, they had failed miserably. The only thing that bugged her was that she and Cyrus Borg, who was forced into building something, were kept under the watchful eye of Machia. That and the way the vengestone cuffs dug into her wrists.

"Was I talking to you?" Krux asked.

"You are now."

His eye twitched for a moment before he snatched her by the hair and pulled her to him. Krux's eyes flashed red as he fumed, "I've had it up to here with you, brat. Now you be a good little princess and keep your pretty mouth shut or-"

"Or what, you'll hurt me or my friends?" she questioned. With all her might, she yanked her head back and kept her composure while looking him in the eye. "You can do whatever you want with me, I've already been exposed to cruelty and I can't fully recover from it, but I can take whatever you got. Oh, and my friends? They've had their fair share, they won't be so easily phased."

"Oh, forget her," Blunck pleaded, "she doesn't cooperate with us; the only thing she does is talk and talk and- I can just feel my hearing getting weaker with every word that comes out of her mouth. She isn't even the reason we lost the blade, it was the Blue Ninja. He rode in on a super fast, weird bike out of nowhere."

"I definitely want one," Raggmunk commented.

"So I used the Time Blade and did that weird time bubble thing."

"He did, and I did it, too."

Krux tensed up as he turned slowly to face the generals. "You used… _the Time Blade?!"_

Acronix spat, "You were not given permission to use the Time Blade!"

"And if you knew what the Time Blade did…" Krux slowly creeped up to Blunck and gestured for him to come closer. Rather than whisper, he shouted at the top of his lungs, " _ **THEN YOU IDIOTS WOULD NOT HAVE LOST THE TIME BLADE!"**_

They shrunk back in their armor and trembled at his boiling rage. Meekly, Raggmunk squeaked, "Now that I think about it, we probably didn't use the Time Blades."

"Oh, so you used the Time Blades, lost the Time Blades, and now lie about using and losing the Time Blades!" Acronix bellowed. "You two really are loyal and dedicated to our cause, aren't you now?!"

"We are, and we have a plan to get it back," the rusty colored snake assured. "We tell the Ninja that we'll give back Cyrus Borg in exchange for the Time Blade."

Krux groaned, "The reason we kidnapped Cyrus was so that he could build the apparatus, we can't use him."

Blunck quickly stepped forward with a grin on his face. "I have a better idea. Plan A version 2.0: We use the girl as bait."

"I beg your pardon?" Maria asked.

"He's right, we never needed her," Raggmunk realized. "So that means we could use her as bait, and when the Ninja come for her and give us the blade, we don't give them the girl!"

"Bam! Double cross! Then it's Time Blade fun time!" Blunck cheered.

There plan only frustrated the former Elemental Masters as they shared a look and groaned. "Did it occur to you at all," Krux began, "that the Ninja would find this place because of how important the girl is, figure out our master plan and take our blade due to your idiocy?!"

"Ok, that's _one_ possibility," Blunck acknowledged, "but hear me out. I have a plan B, I call it Operation: Fudge Bomb. We need 1,000 gallons of chocolate ice cream and-"

"What we need is a plan that'll work," Machia interrupted. She glided past Maria's cage with a glint in her eye as they had locked contact for a second, sending shivers up her spine as to what she had in store.

"You have my attention," Acronix said.

"Because of the temporal scanner on the Borg Watch, we know the location of the blade. Now we just need to go get it."

Maria gasped, "Wait, you're going to our base?"

Machia chuckled as she walked over to her cage. She leaned forward with a smirk on her face. "We are, besides, you said you and your friends wouldn't be phased by what we would do. I guess we'll know the truth."

"Then let's ready the Vermillion Warriors," Krux ordered. The generals snapped to attention and headed out of the room and into the swamp. The Time Twins were close behind just as Krux popped his head back in. "Oh, and if either of you try to escape, just know there will be a few Warriors all around this place ready to say hi."

Then, throwing his head into the air laughing, he left and had the cold steel door shut with a loud thump. Sitting down slowly and bringing her knees in, the Pink Ninja whispered, "He's not bluffing, is he?"

"None of them are," Borg replied, stopping for a moment to turn his wheelchair to face her. "It's hard, but we must stay strong and find a way to get you out of here."

"That's what I'm trying to do…but I can't," she sighed. "I'm trying to keep a calm mind and maybe think of a way to get out of here, but there's nothing we can do and I'm freaking out. I've just been getting scared and done reckless things, now look where I am. What kind of Ninja am I?"

"I'd say a very strong one, and a very strong young lady. Look at yourself, you've made it this far," he said in a comforting tone. "You've been through a lot, but you're still here. If you were really weak, you wouldn't have tried to help those people, you would've quit a long time ago and gone back to wherever you came from, but you didn't. After all, Ninja never quit."

'Ninja never quit,' she thought. Maria let her head rest against the cool bars of the cage, her hair spilling out of the gaps. She closed her heavy eyelids as she lamented on that phrase. 'Ninja never quit,' she repeated to herself. 'Ninja never quit, neither will I.'

* * *

" _And here is where the magic happens: the living room!" Jay stepped aside as he flung the door open. Maria stepped inside, the Ninja close behind her, as she examined the small space. It had a little tv with a pile of video games and a couch. "Sorry we didn't include it on the first tour, but we have a rule: what happens in the living room stays in the living room."_

" _It's fascinating, I've never played video games on the tv at home," she said, picking up a game and examining its case. "Maybe we can all hang out tonight and you guys could teach me the controls."_

 _Murmurs of agreement were heard. One cheery voice stuck out as it said, "We could totally hang out, Your Highness."_

 _A quite gasp escaped her lips just as she heard a loud smack and an "OW!" Everything had gone quiet, they wanted an answer from her but didn't bother to ask her. She could feel their eyes on her, a skill she mastered unwilling. Maria set down the game and licked her dry lips, allowing them to spread into a big, simple smile as she looked over her shoulder. "Did you guys say something?"_

" _I had a bug on my arm," Jay quickly explained, though his face said different._

" _And I flicked it off," Kai said. "So, we just have to get you settled in and then we can relax. Where's your stuff?"_

" _I was staying at a hotel downtown, it's just my messenger bag and sleeping bag."_

" _I can get it," Nya volunteered. "You can head over to my room in the meantime and settle in since we'll be sharing._

" _Ok," she agreed as she pulled her room key out of her pocket and handed it to her. "Could I stay in here for a little bit?"_

" _Of course, we have chores to tend to," the nindroid, Zane, said as he ushered the others out. He closed the door behind them, allowing her to exhale and plop herself on the couch. She flung her arms out and rested her head over the armrest, her curls grazing the dusty, wooden floor. She stared up at the ceiling and examined every little crack and crevice._

" _What did you sign yourself up for, Maria Psyche?" she asked herself._

" _That's a nice name," a voice complimented._

 _She let out a squeak and fumbled to sit up right. Instead she lost balance and fell onto the ground, seeing green on the way down. Red flooded to her cheeks, Maria sat up and locked eyes with Lloyd, who was sitting by her all that time. "Did I scare you?" he asked, concern in his tone._

" _No, I'm ok," she said, pulling herself up next to him on the couch. "Well…uh, thanks, I like my name, too, even though you could shout Maria and 30 women would respond since it's common and I'm rambling, aren't I?"_

" _It's alright," he chuckled, "I'm sure you've got a lot to say and we've got a lot to learn about you. How about it?"_

 _She quickly looked away for a moment to process this. Someone actually wanted to know more about her, and it was a_ _ **guy.**_ _..but she wasn't scared. Maria could feel this presence around him, it was calming and familiar almost. She took a deep breath in and released it, along with any worries, and faced him once again. "Well, I have a question: how'd you get in here without me hearing you?"_

" _I'm a Ninja," Lloyd explained, "I've been at this for a long time. You're technically a Ninja now, you've just got a long way to go to be where the rest of us are. Now here's my next question and I want you to be honest. Did you.." he stopped for a second, "did you hear what Jay called you?"_

 _The color drained from her face, she went cold. She opened her mouth but no words were formed, only a series of gasping noises came out. Lloyd arched an eyebrow as he leaned in to examine her. "Are you choking or something?"_

" _NO!" Maria blurted. "I mean yes-well, no…wait a second. No, I'm not choking, but yes, I heard what Jay called me." She stopped to catch her breath and hung her head down. "Sorry, I sound like such a weirdo, but why did he call me that?"_

" _It just slipped out, but I'm a little curious," his voice said. "I don't know much about reincarnation but I'm wondering if being called Your Highness...did that trigger any memories from your past life?"_

" _No, nothing like that has caused any memories to stir up within me." Maria began running her hand through new pink curl in comfort and asked, "I didn't want to talk about this really, but I'm scared and confused about myself. I came here because I thought I could have a fresh start but I feel like I set myself up. Thousands of years ago, I did something in my last moments to prepare me for this life and now I don't really know what to do…I never did know what to do."_

 _She heard him get up and was caught off guard as he sat back down closer. A sharp, silent inhale entered her lungs as he placed his hands on her shoulders and turned her towards him. "Listen to me for a sec," he said with a serious look on his face, "before my father was gone forever, he told me something important, 'there comes a time when every boy must become a man. What sort of man, is up to him.' If that's true, then every girl must become a woman someday, but what sort of woman is up to her."_

" _So I…I shouldn't let this stop me?" she asked._

" _You shouldn't let it make you quit," Lloyd replied while taking her hand. "We, Ninja, also live by a code: Ninja never quit. No matter what life throws at you, don't let it make you scared or feel like you can't be the person you want to be."_

 _A smile, a real one, came upon her lips as she chuckled. "Well, I can't go back home, I studied for hours to get out of school and I don't have any bus tokens left. You know what? I'll stay and train to be a Ninja on two conditions."_

" _I'm listening."_

" _I don't want to be treated like royalty, I'd like having friends instead. And two," she looked down at their hands, "can I have my hand back, please?"_

 _Lloyd released his grip and hopped up from his seat. "Sorry, I don't know what came over me in that moment," he declared. "I mean your hand was right there and I guess it felt right to hold it a bit- hey, are you hungry? Me, too, I'll go see about dinner!" With his body scrunched up, he quickly shuffled out the door and didn't look back._

 _Maria placed her hand over her heart and could feel a sudden, racing pulse beat in her chest. No, it wasn't love, that was a feeling that she'd never known, but it wasn't a bad feeling. He was just so nice to her the whole time they've known each other, even though it was quite short. It made her face warm up as she felt herself get lighter and float just above the floor. Perhaps this feeling was…friendship._

" _Ninja never quit," she told herself. Taking out her phone, she examined her reflection again and frowned slightly when she remembered her new curl. It was a strong reminder that things would never be the same, it was a mark of royalty in a way…but maybe it didn't have to be like that. Maybe she could help people just like her dad did and know more about him. Perhaps go beyond what he did and give back to her mom so she could live the life they both deserved._

" _Ninja never quit," she repeated to herself while gently stroking her curl, "neither will I. I'm not gonna quit and be a sad, weak kid, that'll be my reason to fight and be strong. That'll be my promise."_

* * *

 _ **BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!**_

The Pink Ninja's eyes shot open as she sprang up from her nap. The whole room shook, dust and tiny pieces of ceiling falling from above with every impact that came from outside. Cyrus was hanging onto the table as the ground trembled below them. The force was great enough to knock her cage over and break the lock to the door off.

"What's happening?" she shouted over the noise, crawling out on her knees. She quickly rushed over by Cyrus and took cover under the table.

"You fell asleep for a while, then this happened!" he replied. "Maybe the others have come to save us."

 _ **BOOM!**_

A giant sword pierced the huge, steel door, allowing the wielder to tear open an entryway. The sword pulled back, a large red and black robotic suit stepping forward, approaching them closer and closer. Threatened, Maria shot out from under the table and quickly placed herself in front of Borg, ready to protect him of any harm that was coming his way.

"Wait a moment," Borg said, wheeling his chair around her and up to the suit.

"Mr. Borg!"

"It's ok," he assured, "it's the Samurai X suit Nya built and used. However…there's something different. I don't think Nya is piloting it, but they can't be an enemy if they took out those snakes that were guarding us."

The Pink Ninja bravely walked up to the suit where they both stopped once they were only inches away. She stretched her head up as far as she could, timidly asking, "Who are you? Are you really helping us?"

Not a single sound came from the suit at that point, it instead locked onto the people below it. Finally, it moved again, the machine sounds whirring as it stretched its arm down, offering an opened hand. As though she understood and communicated with this stranger, Maria walked over and gently sat down in the palm. Looking back at Borg, she questioned, "You're coming, right? We can't leave you here."

"I'm afraid I must," sighed Borg. He rolled his chair over to the pile of scrap metal that was to be used for the apparatus and pulled out a small key and her neko-te. Coming back over to return her weapon and unlock her chains, he explained, "They're bound to come back mad if they fail their mission and find you gone. It's best I stay here and continue working, it should pacify them a little longer until you and the Ninja return to save everyone captured here."

"But what if they hurt you? What if they hurt everyone else they've taken out of anger? What if-"

Removing the chains from her wrists, he looked her in the eye, a hopeful smile on his face. "What if you don't go now and never see your friends again? They're under attack now and could use a little help, it only takes only person to change the odds. And you," he looked up, "you take her home, people miss her dearly."

The inventor took a step back as the suit closed its hand just enough to keep Maria from falling out. It began walking back out the door, it's engines firing up, ready to blast into the sky. Before Samurai X soared into the sky, the Ninja waved a sorrowful goodbye to Borg. After that, they were rushing through the clouds and flying against the clear blue sky.

* * *

What could've been hours felt like minutes as Samurai X continued onto the Temple of Airjitzu. Maria's hair flew back in the wind as she kept looking out for her home. In the distance, explosions could be heard as faintly as thunder rumbling. Emerging from a sea of clouds, the temple came into sight, as well as green dragon, swooping close to the ground where the Time Twins and an army stood.

"That's Lloyd!" Maria stood up, waving her arms and shouting at the top of her lungs. "Lloyd, it's me! I'm ok! Look over here, please!"

But he didn't show any reaction that he heard her. He kept attacking the Vermillion Warriors, taking out tanks and catapults with each dive, and commanding his dragon to breathe green fire onto the surrounding grounds.

"Please, Lloyd," she uttered to herself, "can't you see me?"

* * *

"This is getting on my nerves," Krux said. "The Ninja are winning!"

"Well, you didn't mention them having dragons," Acronix explained while pointing to the sky. "They look like they're pretty good at riding them. Speaking of which, where's our dragons?"

Blocking out their meaningless conversation, Machia peered through her telescope at the boy. He had taken out a good portion of their Warriors with that trick. If he kept this up, then their chance at retrieving the blade would be…wait, what was-?

"Everyone look in the sky!" All eyes fell on Machia as she pointed to what she had saw. Of all times to try to escape, that girl chose today and now to break free. There she was now gliding amongst clouds with a mech aiding her, approaching the Ninja more and more.

"I see…a bunny?" Acronix questioned.

Marching over to him, she growled in frustration. "Not the clouds, the mech. And it's not _just_ the mech!" Handing him the telescope, he looked through it and gasped. His reaction made his brother, Krux, snatch it from him to take a look and react similarly.

"That little brat!" He nearly snapped the telescope with his own hands in that moment, as anger boiled in him "If she reunites with the Ninja, she'll jeopardize everything! She must be stopped and retrieved at all costs!"

"I know what must be done." Acronix wore a solemn look as he walked over to the catapult. He was prepared to step, but not before looking back and saying, "Brother, launch me at the girl."

"Get down from there," Machia hissed. "Are you mad? _We_ don't need to launch anyone at her, we have arial abilities as well." Focusing her mind, she summoned the Vermillion Warriors made especially for this moment. "Sky Team, retrieve the princess at all costs!"

Crimson Vermillion Warriors with metal wings soared above them, quickly carrying out Machia's orders. "As for the Green Ninja," she said, "take him out."

* * *

"Please, Lloyd, can't you see me?" Looking back towards Samurai X, Maria pleaded, "we have to hurry, he needs our help."

Shadows appeared over them and grew fast. She looked up to see Vermillion Warriors flying above them, hissing and eyes glowing as they swooped down to strike. Samurai X swiftly pulled out a sword and swatted them away as though they were mere flies, Maria fired a few spirit orbs at them to ward them off. They scattered on impact of the blows, but not all was quiet. From afar a scream was heard, making Maria's heart drop.

The Green Ninja's dragon had disappeared, leaving him helpless as he fell to the ground. A fiery red dragon, Kai's, dived down to try to rescue him, but more of the sky Warriors had arrived. They charged themselves at Kai, distracting him enough to put distance between him and Lloyd that would make it impossible to reach him in time.

"Lloyd!" Maria screamed, reaching out as far as she could. She leaned from the edge of the Samurai's hand, ready to catch him but found they had stopped. "Why'd you stop? Please, we have to help him! Can't you help him!?"

The head of the suit looked down at her, a dim blue light peered out from the helmet. In a robotic, masculine voice, it calmly spoke. "Control your fear and use your powers. Keep a calm mind and fly."

"You…you can speak?" She quickly shook off that surprise when she realized what else the Samurai requested of her. "Wait, _fly_? Me? I can't fly, I haven't learned anything! I might not even be able to, I'm not like the others!"

"That's why _you_ must save him. Think calmly and tame your fear, but we are running out of time." Samurai X held out his hand farther for her to jump off and fly, but she couldn't. Still, Lloyd was getting closer to the ground until it would be too late. Without thinking, Maria ran off and jumped.

Indeed, she didn't think it through, as she screamed for a time on her way down, but there was little time left to think now. She closed her eyes, took in a breath as she folded her hands together and summoned a spirit orb. Maybe there was a chance she could something with her powers, Maria knew she just needed to use calm mind.

"You can do this," she encouraged herself, "just stay calm and you'll activate calm mind. Just think of Lloyd. Think of the good times."

Memories can rushing through her head, all of them giving off a feeling inside her. She thought of him; kind and caring Lloyd, someone who gave her advice, a new home, friends, happiness, a second chance. She remembered that first meeting, literally running into him on that fateful day, how there was an unexplainable urge in her to go looking and find him again after they went about their day. The jolt of energy she got from shaking his hand, having his arm around her in comfort, his hand ruffling her hair playfully, made her breath still. The gentle grip he gave her when he looked her in the eye that day quickened her pulse just at the slightest thought of it.

"I wanna feel that again," she told herself, the spirit orb in her hands glowing brighter with each second. "I wanna feel the happiness you gave me, I want you to hold me again and smile at me. I want to feel the strength you've been giving me. You, Lloyd Garmadon…" He was only a few feet away when her orb began to take shape, a shrill cry pierced the air.

"…you are my promise."

In a flash of light, Maria was now suddenly gripping to a pair of straight, smooth horns connected to a mighty, pink dragon. It's feathery wings flattened against its elegant, slender body as it dived down. It's bright pink hair blew furiously in the rushing wind as they came upon Lloyd. It's snapped it's tail like a whip, sudden and fast, and wrapped it around him just before he hit the ground. Securing him in the grip and letting him rest on the soft tuft of hair at the end of its tail, the dragon let out a cry before flying back up to the temple.

Maria carefully guided the dragon as it set Lloyd down carefully on the ground. He, and the others, quickly scrambled to the pink dragon as it landed daintily right next to the temple's entrance. The Pink Ninja slid off, the dragon vanishing the second her feet hit the ground. Just at that time, she was bombarded by her friends, each getting up in her face, talking at once.

She didn't understand what any of them had said as she only focused on finding on particular face. She finally did as he cleared his throat to gain the attention of the others. They parted perfectly for the two Ninja to see each other clearly for the first time in a while. Neither said a word, they only stared at the other at a distance, remembering the other's look for this moment, their reunion. Tears began welling up in their eyes and poured down their faces as they finally ran to the other and embraced.

Maria rested her head in the crook of his neck, feeling his pulse and warmth. Both felt cold tears dampen the back of their necks, but ignored it. She felt him stroke her head just to calm both of them down a bit before pulling back, yet not letting the other go.

"I thought you were gonna die," she said through tears, "I saw you fall and I tried keeping calm. I just wanted to see you and the others again. I was so scared and they hurt me, but something in my heart told me to have hope that it would be ok, deep down."

" I just… I can't believe you're here," he said, wiping his face with his sleeve. "I've been worried sick, especially with what Jay told me. This just doesn't seem real, after all this time you've been gone. And-and you summoned your dragon! I'm so proud of you!"

She smiled her sweet, simple smile as that feeling ran though her again. Overjoyed, he picked her up and spun her around, the two laughing away with no worries on their shoulders anymore. He set her down just as the others circled around them.

"You don't fail to surprise us, Pinky!" Jay pulled her in for a quick side hug. "I mean, your dragon was beautiful! I can't believe you flew that thing all the way out here!"

"Oh, I didn't fly all the way here with my dragon," Maria said. "I was trapped with Cyrus Borg where they forced him to build an apparatus, Vermillion Warriors were at all the exits if we tried to escape. I couldn't think straight, I got nervous, but thankfully, help came in the nick of time."

On cue, Samurai X flew down and landed perfectly beside them. An enraged Nya suddenly pushed her way to the front, marching right up to the mech. "You! You stole my suit, you thief! Who are you?!"

"I've got this," Jay calmly said. He cleared his throat and spoke at the loudest volume he'd ever used. _**"WHO. ARE. YOU?!"**_

"He's the one who helped me," the Pink Ninja said on the Samurai's behalf. "Samurai X rescued me and flew me here. He encouraged me to save Lloyd and summon my dragon. Nya, you're upset with good reason, but if it wasn't for him, Lloyd and I wouldn't be here."

The Samurai gave a short bow to the Pink Ninja before, without warning, flying away. It didn't stop Nya as she continued to fume. "So we're supposed to be ok with this?! He stole my suit!"

"And saved Maria's life and mine," the Green Ninja defended. "He deserves our thanks."

Nya ignored him and ran over to the edge, waving her sword at the Samurai. "You hear me?! I'll find you and make you pay for this, suit thief!"

But that time would probably never come. Out of the blue, a spiked, metal ball was catapulted from below, making direct contact with Samurai X at the center. The Ninja joined Nya on the edge as they watched in horror. A trail of smoke followed close behind him until he sunk beneath the clouds and was no more.

"Ninja…" a weak voice cried out, snapping their heads to the source. Sensei Wu had been cornered by a Vermillion Warrior as he guarded the blue Time Blade he possessed. The snake smacked it out of his hands, leaving him helpless. With Wu defenseless, the Pink Ninja quickly dove for the blade and used it on the Vermillion, leaving it in a blue orb as it slowed down.

"Huh, so _that's_ what that time bubble does," she said.

Zane quickly threw his shurikens at the snake, causing it to lose its form and revert back to slithering snakes. Kai ran over to help Wu up, along with Maria, as he uttered, "Your father…"

"What about my father?" Kai asked.

"Time's up!" The Hands of Time had flown up with the same metal wings the Warriors had used and landed. They held hands as Acronix displayed the fast forward Time Blade in his possession. The Blade began to glow, alerting the Ninja.

"Stop them!" Lloyd ordered. He, along with Zane, Cole, Nya and Jay charged, ready to attack. At the last second, they warped somewhere, some _time_ else. Everyone frantically looked around, until they had at last appeared, right in front of Wu and the two Ninja.

Acronix slashed them with the blade, separating the group. He aimed the blade at Wu, ready to attack when Maria aimed the blade she possessed at him, screaming, "Don't you touch him!" A bolt of energy struck him, slowing him down into a time bubble.

Wu quickly hit the blade from his grasp and threw it in Kai's direction; however, he was still weak as it didn't reach its recipient. The blade made it halfway before falling and sliding at Krux's feet. He picked it up with a chuckle as he headed towards Kai. Quickly acting on instinct, Maria threw the blade to him, successfully catching it this time and leaving his sword behind. The two fought, blades colliding and sparks flying in an equal match.

The time bubble around Acronix had run out, allowing him to sprint, while picking up Kai's fallen sword, and aid his brother. Jay, Lloyd, and Maria quickly blocked him, standing their ground. "Oh, how cute," he mocked, "the child wants to play the role of Sensei."

"It's a mistake for you to underestimate my skills as a Ninja and Sensei," Lloyd replied.

"Says the boy who fell off his dragon and was saved by mere chance. And you," he pointed towards Maria, "you think you'll live to see another day and jeopardize all my brother and I worked for? Not after all you've seen!" He thrusted the sword, but missed as they bent backwards.

Lloyd and Maria quickly flipped over him, striking him from behind. Acronix thrusted his sword again, but Maria had parried with her neko-te, throwing him backwards. The remaining Ninja quickly pinned him down as they watched Kai ward off Krux. The Master of Time saw a chance to strike and sent himself forward in time by just a second and reappeared behind him, knocking him to his feet with a swift kick.

Krux's eyes widened as his attention turned towards the others and his captive brother. "Release him immediately!"

"Give us the other Time Blade and call off the attack," Cole negotiated, "then we'll let him go."

"How about a fairer deal?" He raised the blade once more and warped out of sight. It wasn't until the Pink Ninja was jerked back that he revealed himself. Holding the blade up to her face, it's green glow shimmering on her skin, he said, "Release my brother and give me the other blade, or else you'll watch your princess age into dust before your very eyes!"

"Get your hands off my sister!" Lloyd, in a rage, was held back by the others. "We'll give you what you want, but if you pull one on us-"

"Don't do it! He's gonna trick you, I know too much!" Maria warned. She kept pulling away at his grip without having the blade touch her as best as she could.

"Will you be quiet?!" Krux hissed. "Honestly, you do talk too much! I'm trying to make Ninjago mine for my brother and I to rule, and you've been annoying, whiny, bratty, a headache, a baby-"

"Cut that out, she's just a kid!" Cole shouted.

"Oh, she's a kid alright," he spat. "This girl is nothing but a kid. And you know what? She's a kid that's also a bit-a bit… _ **selfish**_!"

Her face fell and went cold. Maria's eye began twitching as she clenched her teeth, clamped her hands onto his wrist. He cried out in pain as she twisted his arm behind his back, making him drop the Time Blade he possessed. She began spinning him around in her spinjitzu tornado while screaming, " _I. AM NOT._ _ **SELFISH**_ _!"_

She released him, sending him flying into the wall of the temple. He was stuck there for a time before falling down to the ground unconscious. The Ninja stared at her, eyes widen as Jay asked, "Where did _that_ come from?"

She picked up the Time Blade and handed it to Lloyd. Panting, after exerting herself, she replied, "You can't call me selfish out of nowhere without getting a beat down."

"Ok, I have the coolest little sister in Ninjago," Lloyd chuckled.

Krux stood up groaning, only to be knocked away by Cole's scythe, having him drop the remaining blade. Lloyd picked it up and now wielded both blades triumphantly. The teens cheered, it was all over. They had won.

"Ninja," the weak Sensei said as shakily stood up, "behind you!"

The blades could no longer be felt on the Green Ninja's hands; they had been snatched by Machia, as she flew over them. The second she landed, she used the slow motion blade on them, stopping them from charging her. They watched it all go by so fast as the Hands of Time regrouped and stood by her, laughing and taking possession of the blades.

"I swore to you we'd retrieve the blades, and we did," she said. "Now what'll we do with that girl? Throw her off a cliff? Feed her to a beast?"

"We can forget her," Krux replied, "we'll take him instead!" He pointed at Wu and the general quickly seized him. Above them, a flying ship, similar to the _Bounty,_ hovered and threw down a ladder. They all hurried up with Krux looking back just as the time bubble wore off, having them trip and fall. "Farewell, Ninja!"

"I…I just wanted to know about my father." They all picked themselves off the ground, Kai looking out in the distance were Wu was being taken. "Sensei tried to tell me, but it's too late now. They won and he's…gone."

"And the Time Blades," Cole added.

"The _Bounty_ is also down," Zane commented, "along with Samurai X."

"But they didn't win," Lloyd spoke. "We lost, we were overconfident and this happened. Everything, our plan, they only way to get him back, it all came crashing down on us."

Maria walked over and comforted him. "But they left me here and I'm safe now. I remember where they set up their base, I can lead us there."

"You think it's gonna be easy?" the Blue Ninja questioned. "They know we'll come, they're gonna strengthen their defenses and make it harder for us to save everyone they've taken. It's Kryptarium Prison all over again!"

"You were in prison?"

"I…uh, no comment!"

"We're gonna find Wu," Lloyd said. "And we'll make them pay." He kicked a nearby helmet in anger, the armor piece rolling and bumping into Kai's leg.

He picked it up and observed it. A fog came upon his eyes, as though he was trying to recall a memory from long ago. When he snapped out of his trance, he gasped and faced the others. His face was pale as he showed the inside of the helmet, revealing a symbol pressed into the metal.

"This…changes everything."

* * *

 **Maria's dragon is on my tumblr, and a quick note on that: her dragon is based off a feng huang. It's a specific type of Chinese dragon that is female and has some resemblance to a Phoenix. I recommend giving it a look. Now then, as I always say, feel free to ask questions, comments, concerns.**

 **Next chapter on Ninjago:Legend Reborn...**

 **Secrets Discovered**

 **Until then, God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good.**


	44. 43: Secrets Discovered

**Disclaimer: I am not affiliated with the Hageman Bros. Therefore, I don't have property rights over the official show/characters. But I own the OC's or other material that is created by my own unique mind, so I have legal right to sue you if you steal…if I had a lawyer.**

 **It's that time, my fellow Ninjago lovers. Time for a relatively short chapter, but none the less, a new chapter!**

* * *

 **Chapter 43: Secrets Discovered**

"Come on everyone, we're leaving in 5!" Lloyd shouted across the room. The Ninja fumbled to get everything they needed and ready to go. It wasn't long that Sensei Wu had been kidnapped from them and every minute from then on mattered more than anything. They planned to head out and try to retrieve him and stop the Time Twins…with emphasis on the word _try._ Misako only stood by and watched as her son took charge.

"I'm all packed!" The Pink Ninja dragged her overstuffed messenger bag behind her as she panted, "I'm all…ready to save…Wu!" She fell over to catch her breath, the others carefully stepping over her as the Green Ninja opened her bag and questioned the contents inside.

"Hey, bud, what did you pack in here?"

"First aid kit, my book, my phone, food and water, a cloth I use to clean my weapon, makeup-"

"Seriously, kid?" Cole asked, him and the others gathering into the dojo, ready to leave. "I know you wanna help, but this is a rescue mission, not a beauty pageant. You're not gonna have time to reapply your makeup."

She lifted herself off the ground with a look on her face. "I don't wear makeup, I get allergic reactions to a majority of that face paint. Besides, Jay told me to get it for him," she gestured towards the Lightning Ninja, his face pale. "His cold sore is acting up again, so he wanted me to pack his old stage make-"

"That's enough out of you!" Jay exclaimed, throwing himself at her to cover her mouth and stop talking. "You're still suffering from being held captive, you don't know what you're saying," he chuckled nervously.

"Ok, enough fooling around." Lloyd separated the two and handed the bag back to Maria. He stood at the front of the room and cleared his throat to gain their attention. "The Time Twins have two blades now, two more remain out there somewhere. It's our job to get them before they can do whatever it is they're planning."

He pulled out a map that had all of Ninjago City drawn onto it and laid it out before them on the ground. "Obviously, they're heading back to their base, but just in case, we need to see if there's any secondary locations that are just as important." He pointed at Maria and said, "This is where you come in, bud. I know it might be hard, but I need you to try and remember all details of your kidnapping."

She pointed towards herself while meekly replying. "M-me? But it happened so fast in the first few moments, I'm not sure I can remember it _exactly."_

"Yes, you can," Cole encouraged. He pointed at a street on the map and drew an imaginary line. "Remember, you landed the super sonic raider jet from here and came to help us when we were over here. They took you when we were held up at the time."

"I remember they took me down to the sewers," she thought while examining the map, trying to recall all the details she could. "It was dark and cold, I tried breaking free so I didn't really pay attention to where they were taking me. After a while, the Vermillion Warrior-"

A snort was heard from behind them. They turned their heads at Jay who was holding in a laugh. "I'm sorry," he quickly explained, "their names are just so ridiculous."

"As I was saying, the Vermillion Warrior listened to me and took a left after we went down straight for a half hour or so."

"Odd," Zane commented. "Assuming you went straight after that turn, then you would've ended up back at the museum."

"That's…impossible," Maria replied. "I never went back to the museum, he took me to a dark room with a container, , and Krux and Acronix were there. My kidnapping was a mistake, but they decided to keep me as a hostage. I can't remember much after that, but if I went back to that room-"

"I believe you," said Kai. "But maybe that dark room _was_ in the museum and you didn't know it at the time."

"How do you figure that?" Nya asked.

"When I fought with Krux, just before you arrived, Acronix appeared out of nowhere. Like he came from thin air…or thin walls."

The Green Ninja rolled up the map and put it away. "It makes sense, Krux hid there for years in plain sight. He must've eventually built some secret room that was close enough for him to have quick access to work on his plans. We'll check it out before we look for them in case they left anything behind."

"If I may," the nindroid interrupted, "I could fix my temporal scanner and locate the Hands of Time, it might even help us find the remaining Time Blades."

"Better idea: I could fix the temporal scanner on the _Bounty_ while you guys go to the museum," Nya offered.

"Then I'll go with you," her brother said. "We can take our bikes."

"Dibs on sharing the Lighting Bike with Cole!" Jay proclaimed as they began heading out.

Lloyd stopped for a moment. "Hang on a sec, what about Zane, Maria and me? The other vehicles are out of commission."

"I could take my dragon," the Pink Ninja replied. "The Hands of Time most likely went underground, so a bright pink dragon flying around the city shouldn't draw _too much_ attention."

"Actually," Misako stepped out from the sidelines, "I might be able to help with that. It was supposed to be a surprise for your birthday, but now's a good time as ever." She pulled a remote from her back pocket and activated it, having the floor split in two. On a rising platform from below came a smaller version of the _Destiny's Bounty,_ looking big enough for two people. "I present to you the _Destiny's Shadow!"_

"You've gotta be kidding me!" Kai's outburst rang out through the temple. "First Jay, now Lloyd. Does everybody get a new vehicle for their birthday?!" He stopped as he realized everyone stared at him. "Did I say that out loud?"

"I love it!" Lloyd gave his mother a quick hug. He rushed inside, along with Zane. "How do I work this thing? There's so many buttons," he murmured as he pushed one, sounding off the horn. Lloyd tried another and music began blasting out of the ship. He quickly turned it off and finally found the right one to start the engine.

"I wish Wu could've seen this…" Misako sighed.

"He will, will get him back sooner or later."

"It's the later I worry about."

The Ninja exchanged glances after she had said that. It was though she had little faith in them…or was hiding something. "Is there something you're not telling us?" Jay bravely asked.

"I…forget I said anything," she dismissed. "Wu made me swore not to tell any of you.I can't go back on my word just because he isn't here."

"We're a team," the Green Ninja said. "We don't keep secrets; Wu kept so many of them, look where it got him."

Giving in, she exhaled and made no eye contact as she explained. "During his fight with Acronix, Wu got hit with a powered punch from the forward Time Blade. I'm afraid the effects of that blast are progressing his aging faster than he expected."

Shocked by the news, they struggled to find their words. "Then that's why…that's why he's been so tired all the time and rambling nonsense," Nya said.

"And why he has a super long old guy beard!" Jay gasped.

Maria arched an eyebrow. "Jay, he always had that."

"I wasn't asking you, Pinky!"

"That's gives us all the more reason to head out now." The engine roared to life and prepared to fly out of the temple. The others quickly headed out to their rides, allowing the Green Ninja to steer out and into the sky.

* * *

The wind blew a strong gust of wind towards the city. A nauseous feeling crept into Maria's stomach, but she shook it away. Glancing over the edge of the floating island, she took in a breath and started to summon a spirit orb and create her drag-

"Hey, Pinky!"

She stopped but wasn't frightened after that sudden interruption. "What's up, Jay?" she replied over her shoulder to the Blue Ninja. He walked over to her and offered her a smile. His eyes were odd, they shone with contemplation.

"I wanted to say…" He began scratching the back of his head nervously, avoiding eye contact for a brief moment. "I'm not sure how to say this exactly…you getting kidnapped was my fault, and all the things they did to you was a result of that. I already apologized to Lloyd, so I wanted to say…I'm sorry for putting you in danger like that."

She was taken aback by this. He felt guilty all this time by something that wasn't inherently his fault and apologized for it. Smiling, she said, "It's fine, Krux and Acronix are the ones responsible for this mess, abusing their elemental powers for evil purposes and controlling a snake army. Besides," a cheeky look flashed on her face, "I think it might be karma punishing me for eating your pudding cup."

"Yeah, but…what?!"

"Never mind about that, race you down there!" She ran off the ledge, and summoned a spirit orb just as she did not long to create her dragon and…nothing.

Confused, she tried again, closing her eyes and visualizing it in detail. She remembered the smooth surface of the horns, the softness of the hair that came from it's head, like a pink cloud. Maria recalled its slender but powerful body it possessed, the feathery wings that it used to fly at high speeds. She opened her eyes to behold her vision…she screamed as she plummeted to the ground.

Her arms flailed as she struggled to catch her breath over the rushing winds. Her heart raced as she eventually closed her eyes and braced herself. This would be it. Her dragon wasn't reacting to her anymore, it was too late.

 **THUMP!**

The Pink Ninja groaned as she lifted herself off the wooden platform of the _Destiny's Shadow._ She groggily turned her head at her brother, a concerned look on his face as he quickly rushed over to help her up. The flashing lights of the city rushing by them intensified her headache and almost made her nauseous again. "What were you thinking?" he asked as he set her down next to his seat.

"My dragon," she replied, rubbing the bump on her head. "I tried summoning it just like before but it didn't work this time. I swore I had it down, why didn't it show up?"

He sighed and patted her head in comfort. "That was a lucky first try; it worked because you wanted to save me. Normally fear keeps us from summoning them, but an elemental dragon also takes a lot of energy to form, you don't really have that power at your disposal like we do. Imagine how tiring it will be once you master it."

Maria pouted as she held on to him. "So I'm earthbound again? Am I going to be stuck on the ground forever?"

"Fear not," Zane called over his shoulder, "you summoned it once. That's quite progressive for you considering how you received your elemental power is different from us. It signifies that you can apply it the way we do, airjitzu isn't that far for you anymore." He locked his head forward and announced, "We're reaching our destination."

The _Shadow_ began slowing down as it reached the museum steps, hovering over them before landing. The Ninja got off as the Lightning Bike screeched to a halt, Cole and Jay popping out and joining them. "You guys good?" Cole asked. "Jay said the kid jumped off and started falling to her doom."

"I'm perfectly fine," Maria assured them. "Let's focus on finding Wu." She broke away and started heading up the stairs, the others following close behind. They separated and began their search, looking under benches and behind artifacts, anything that was unlikely yet likely to be an entrance to a secret room.

"I'm sick of this," Jay complained, throwing fragile display into the air as he searched. Zane fumbled to catch each item before it could meet with a terrible fate. "I mean, how are we supposed to find a secret room in this place? A sign or something wouldn't kill him, would it?"

"Cool it,"Lloyd ordered him. "Sure, this is Krux's stuff, but some of it is expensive and valuable. We can't go around breaking stuff."

"Hey, I'm still upset about what he did to my mom and dad! I could care less about his stuff!" In anger, he grabbed a giant blue vase and tossed it, the Ice Ninja barely grabbing it before it crashed into pieces. "So do you remember anything else now, Pinky?"

"No, I'll check out the other exhibits, maybe the secret room is there somewhere." She quickly left and headed towards a place they would never allow her to go to alone. The _Legends Lost In Time_ exhibit. It was just around the corner and unlocked.

She slowly opened the door so it wouldn't creak and tiptoed in, the center display catching her eye. The glass clock that gave her power back to her. Perhaps it wasn't safe for it to be here; it was time related, the Time Twins could use if they really wanted. Plus if it gave her power back to her after thousands of years…maybe it could give her more.

'Desperate times call for desperate measures, right?' Her thoughts gave her body the will to move towards it and grab ahold of the glass case securing it. 'I need more power, I can control it enough to summon a dragon…' Her trembling hands lifted it up and set the case on the ground carefully. She reached the tip of her finger towards the pink dot. '…if I have more, I can save Wu. I can be as great as I was before, I can-'

" _ **Maria,**_ _ **no!"**_

Just as she turned, Lloyd tackled her to the ground. She looked up at him with a nervous smile. "Hey, Lloyd. How's it going?"

"Are you trying to get yourself killed?" he scolded her. "You don't know what'll happen if touch it! Your body could explode with power! Do you really want that?"

"I'm sorry," she said, pushing him off of her so she could get up. As she stood up, she felt her back bump into something. The wobbling sound of glass triggered her reflexes as she feared the clock was falling. Indeed it was, nearly making contact with the ground, but thankfully she caught it in time. Maria turned back to face Lloyd, his face in horror.

"Look, I'm sorry, but I had to come here. This stuff technically belongs to me, especially the clock. It felt right to get it back and-"

He quickly cut her off. "Forget that. Do you feel any different? Is it doing anything weird?"

She held it up for both of them to see. She noticed her hand was covering the dark blue dot; she removed it just as it started glowing a dim blue light.

"Uhh, what did you do?" he asked.

"Nothing. At least, I think I didn't do anything, I feel the same. Maybe it's nothing."

That theory was proven wrong as a scream was heard, getting closer and closer. Jay came sliding and crashed into the Pink Ninja, knocking them both down. Cole and Zane ran in just as Lloyd helped them both up. "What happened?" they both asked.

"I was just looking at painting because I thought there'd be a secret tunnel or something behind it," Jay groaned. "Next thing I know, I'm pulled into here with no control. I crashed through like three different exhibits."

"It was probably Maria," Lloyd said.

"He's right," she's agreed. "I didn't mean it, I swear! I caught the clock before it fell, my hand touched the blue dot and then you came sliding in…wait, Jay did you say you crashed through some exhibits?"

He gave her a nod as an idea popped into her head. She walked over to the far right of the room and set the clock back against the wall. "If I'm right, I think the clock can attract the gems once they've been activated and are in use, or at least being worn. My power or presence must be able to initiate this."

"A strong hypothesis," Zane agreed. "If that is the case, you could currently attract myself, Lloyd, Kai, or Jay and we'd be pulled towards you and the clock without choice." His face, along with Jay and Lloyd's, fell as he backed up. "You're-youre not actually going to-"

Her hands hovered over the white, blue and green dots. She gulped before managing to say, "I'm sorry guys, but we have to check every inch of the museum. Kai said something about thin walls, so what I'm trying to say is-" Her hands were pressed on the three dots just at the others quickly ran out of the room.

"-nothing ventured, nothing gained." She released her grip.

The three of them began sliding back into the room, shouting protests of being used like this. They grabbed onto the door, but the force was too strong and overpowered them. The door was ripped off its hinges and the three Ninja flew into the wall, crashing through in a cloud of dust and rubble. Maria was pushed back by the impact but regained her senses and retrieved the clock, stuffing it in her bag. She and Cole made their way over the rubble to find their friends sprawled on the ground, dizzy and moaning in pain.

"You guys alright?" Cole asked.

"If you call being forced against your will to break down a wall and get smashed by a giant door, only to find a secret room that may or may not be behind said wall, then I'm high on life," Jay sarcastically replied.

They got up and dusted themselves off. Lloyd marched over to Maria as she examined the room they now stood in. "Ok, I don't think I can take any more of this. I swear if we weren't in the middle of a rescue mission, I'd ground you right here and now and… Are you listening to me, Maria?"

"I'm starting to remember," she whispered.

Realizing themselves they stood in a strange room, the gasped in awe. It was dark and had a container with strange objects inside, just as the Spirit Ninja described. "What is that thing?" Lloyd walked over to the tank and observed it.

"It appears to be a breeding tank," Zane explained. "The conditions seem fit for snake eggs, assuming these are snake eggs and not something much worse."

"I found something, too." Jay walked over to them with a some papers in his hands. "It's a bunch of notes on armor, weapons and some other things. They almost keep mentioning something called an 'apparatus,' whatever that is."

"An apparatus? That's why they kidnapped Mr. Borg!" Maria exclaimed. "I don't know what it is, but it's really big. I remember Blunck and Raggmunk taking me out back to the sewers and the rest is kinda blurry, but there was a path to the sewers. Maybe they blocked it off because they knew we're coming…"

"Maybe not." Cole had begin to pull away part of the wall of the laboratory, revealing a path only lit by the light that peered through the manholes from above. "Here's your sewer path," he said, the others examining it.

"A secret lab with a secret path? Krux really didn't want anyone to find this, huh?" Lloyd stepped out from the group and began walking down the wet path. "Hurry up, we've got no time to waste."

"Down there? But it's all dirty and smelly," Cole protested.

"Suit yourself, I'm following Sensei Lloyd," Maria said, catching up with the leader. Jay, Zane and Cole, reluctantly, followed after.

"You don't have to call me Sensei, bud," Lloyd told her with a smile.

"Yeah, we call him Temporary Sensei Lloyd in Training," Jay corrected. "By the way, do you know where you're going?"

"I do!" The Spirit Ninja placed herself at the front of the group and began leading them. "It's all coming back to me. Follow my lead and will be there before you know it!"

* * *

"'Follow my lead and will be there before you know it!' That's what you said, Pinky,"

"Yeah, but I don't sound like that," she replied.

They stopped for a moment as they observed their surroundings. Without a doubt, Maria knew of their current status and told the guys, "Yeah, we're lost."

"Oh, that's perfect! You couldn't have told us about 20 miles back?!" Cole yelled. An oozing green substance from the ceiling of the sewer dripped and fell on his suit, disgusting him. "Look at this! I just cleaned this suit!"

A squeaking noise was heard above them, shadows darting out at them. The boys quickly glanced up and screamed in fear. They sprinted down the path they were on until they reached the nearest corner to take cover. They panted and hid from the beast. "Lloyd," Jay said between breaths, "you wouldn't happen to have a reconfigurable amphibious vehicle with you, would you?"

"No," he deadpanned. "Wait, where's Maria?!"

"That thing ate her!"

"What did what to me now?" She turned around the corner, a large gray sewer rat was in her arms like a kitten. They recoiled at the sight while she was enjoying holding the creature. "Come on, this little guy is adorable!"

"I don't care, put him down now." Lloyd ordered her. "It could be filled with diseases and fleas."

"Doesn't she hang out with Dareth a lot?" Cole asked him in a whisper. "Maybe she built up an immunity to pests and their weird diseases." Muffled laughter was heard amongst the group as she released the rat.

"Getting back on topic, I believe we might have a vehicle to help us. Just let me access those specs again." Zane's eyes illuminated as he spoke. "Reconfiguration three of the _Destiny's Shadow_ is an experimental amphibious multi terrain assault vehicle, exam tav."

"Ooh, exam tav," Jay said. "Sounds like a laxative, no wonder Kai was jealous."

A rumbling came from down the tunnel, headlights could been seen growing nearer to where they stood. It was the _Shadow,_ in its reconfiguration form Zane had just described. It parked itself right in front of them, allowing them to board.

"I took the liberty of connecting with the museum's wifi to interface with the _Shadow."_

"It beats walking." The five of them were squished on the small replica, but had enough space for Lloyd to reach the controls. "Hang on, guys!" The _Shadow_ went forward with full power, tunnels of sewers flashed by them in an instant.

"Does anyone actually know where we're going?" Jay asked.

"Not really," Lloyd replied, "It's more like trying to find a way out of here and be…well less lost than we were before."

"I'm trying to track our progress and find a way out, but these tunnels are confusing," Zane added on.

Cole groaned. "What is it with villains and their lack of signage? There's no way they know they're way around by memory."

"Maybe the _Shadow_ has a temporal scanner like the real _Bounty,"_ Maria suggested.

"I'm afraid not," the nindroid sighed. "However it does possess a collision avoidance system that inmates multiple targets ahead." He pointed at the shining radar, it gave off a beeping sound as it picked up two red dots nearing them.

"It's an ambush!" the Earth Ninja exclaimed. "Well we're ready for them this time."

The beeping grew louder as the tunnels grew darker. They readied themselves to strike at a moments notice. Suddenly the beeping halted, they reached the snakes. Acting quickly, Jay and Cole tackled the snakes as the ship stopped the moment they reached them. Lloyd fumbled to turn on the headlights; upon seeing a vibrant blue figure, he gasped at the realization of what his friends were doing.

"Jay, Cole, let them go!" His order made them stop, revealing a familiar face shielding a smaller figure. "It's Skales!"

"And my son _, Ssskales_ Jr.," he hissed. He unwrapped a child sized snake from his grasp, allowing them to get a better look at the pair of snakes.

"Lloyd, who are they?" Maria whispered to him.

"Relax, they're enemies that were turned into our friends. It is the best way to beat your enemies, after all." He looked back to the Serpentine and asked, "What're you doing here?"

"Duh, they're sewage experts," Jay answered.

"I meant what're you doing down _here now,"_ he specified as he got off the ship.

"Tracking down the Vermillion _Warriorssss_ , along with these _Conssstrictai_." From the shadows slithered bulkier and darker snakes, they possessed thick skin and spikes.

"Why do you wanna find them? Looking to join them?" the Blue Ninja questioned.

"No, we're trying to _avoid them,_ " the young snake snapped. He began to lunged at him when his father held him back.

"No, son! They don't understand anything!"

"What don't we understand?"

A worried look flashed upon his face. "You Ninja don't really know what you're dealing with, do you? The Vermillion Warriors are the pure first generation progeny of the Great Devourer. Their name has been forgotten as we refuse to speak of them. They possess the same singular drive: consume everything in their path."

"But we fought them," Maria interjected. "They don't seem that powerful as you say they are."

"In small numbers, they are not as big as a threat. But if Krux and Acronix are able to raise and equip enough of them, they'll be an unstoppable hoard. A swarm of Vermillion no one can stop!"

"There was a breeding tank back in their lab," the nindroid said.

'That would be enough to raise a few warriors, but an army requires more," Skales continued. "A bigger area with the specific conditions met to perfection: a _sss_ swamp."

"That's it!" The Pink Ninja exclaimed. "I remember a swamp with a bunch of glowing pods scattered all around. They brought me there, but I'm not sure which swamp it is. There's a few of them in Ninjago, we can't check each of them out."

Skales pulled out a map and handed it to Zane. "Take this, it'll lead you to the swamp. I would escort you there myself, but I have a family to protect. But be warned, Ninja," he whispered darkly. "They're doing more than hatching eggs, they're preparing them for war. And they have your teacher!"

"We know, thank you, Skales." The Ninja quickly headed back on board and took off. "So, Maria," Lloyd said over the echoing roar of the ship's engine, "you said you saw a bunch of pods. Could you be more specific about how many there were?"

She paused for a moment as she tried to remember. "Maybe 3 or 4," she murmured.

"Dozen?"

"Hundred," she corrected.

They shuddered at the thought of all those snakes ready to wreak havoc on Ninjago. Lloyd pulled out his phone and tried to dial in Kai and Nya's numbers. Somewhere across Ninjago, two madmen had their Sensei in a swamp full of snakes ready to strike. They would need the whole team to pull this off. To save their home.

To save their family member.

* * *

 **Hey guys, quick thing! Apparently when a raccoon breaks into a power station, there's a blackout and some trouble with the wifi oddly enough. Then the documents you were proofreading suddenly vanish! );**

 **Yeah, but anyways, since the story is coming to a close, the next chapter will be a mash up and then it's the book's finale! It's time for the long awaited finale, so we gotta wrap this up! Hope ya don't mind!**

 **Next time on Ninjago:Legend Reborn…**

 **Lost In Time**

 **Until then, God is good all the time. All the time, God is good.**


	45. 44: Lost In Time

**Disclaimer: You know the deal, I own what's created by me/stuff you'd don't recognize, while the Hageman Bros own what you recognize or can search on the official Ninjago wiki page.**

 **Hey there! So when it came to this chapter, I didn't want to rewrite the whole fighting scenes that took place between each and every character, so I mashed the last three episodes into one chapter that has a bit of Crystallia originality sprinkled in. Hope ya'll don't mind!**

 **Remember we have two FINAL chapters after this.**

 **Hopeless and All Hail The King, the two parter conclusion!**

 **Now let's buckle in and do this!**

* * *

 **Chapter 44: Lost In Time**

They were wrong when they thought this would be easy. As they stood at the edge of their hiding place overlooking the murky swamp, dozens and dozens of eggs glowed brightly to pierce the fog. Vermillion Warriors were stationed on the ground and in the trees to spot intruders and alarm the generals. The only choice for the Ninja at this point was to continue to wait for Kai and Nya before acting and plan their attack.

"Guys, gather around." Lloyd lead them back to where they entered to seclude them in the shadows from the enemy. They all watched as he laid down the detailed map, it listed every area from the mess hall to the holding cells scattered about. "We can save Wu, but it'll take patience, stealth, concentration, and precise execution."

"Got it,but where does the slug come in?" Jay asked.

"What slug?"

A shriek from Cole answered him. On his shoulder was a thick, slimy slug that clung on tightly as he tried to shake it off. The others chuckled at the sight until the Pink Ninja carefully plucked it off and set it free. "It's just a little one, Cole. He wasn't going to eat you or anything."

"Hey, guys!" Nya, followed by Kai, called to them as the siblings approached. "We miss anything?"

"Cole freaking out over a slug!"

"And Lloyd laying out the plan of attack," Zane quickly added.

"As I was saying," the Green Ninja said, "if we split up, we'd have a better chance of stopping them. Zane will use his sensors to locate Cyrus Borg, Jay and Cole can rescue the workers and builders from the warehouse. Maria and I are going to find Wu, that leaves you and Kai to take down Krux and Acronix." He handed them the map, explaining, "This is the toughest job, you'll need it more than any of us."

"We can do that," Nya replied. "Right, Kai?"

He mumbled to himself while examining the map. She nudged him, snapping him out of his thoughts. "Huh? Oh, yeah. I got it."

"Good, everyone know what their doing?" Murmurs of agreement answered the leader. "Alright, remember that stealth is key. I don't mean to pressure you, but all of Ninjago is counting on us."

The Ninja shared a final look. It was time for them to end this, to end the secret that Wu kept that had torn their team apart. It was time they finished what their ancestors tried to finish. With that lingering thought, they slipped on their hoods and went their separate ways.

* * *

Twenty holding cells. That's how many there were in the swamp. It was quite a small number for all the people they had taken captive. Then again, it could've been that they had them all working for whatever purpose the Hands of Time and Vermillion needed fulfilled. The cells were probably used in extreme cases for punishment…or worse.

The thought sent a chill down Lloyd's spine, knowing Wu could be going through something at this very moment. All he was doing to help was darting back and forth from the shadows of the trees with Maria, avoid being seen by the sentries that guarded almost every inch of the swamp. The two stopped behind an old rotting tree to observe where they were now.

"Are you sure he might be in this one?" Maria asked in a low voice. The path ahead in the distance had little trees and was rocky. Most likely a cave was being used as a the holding cell and possibly keeping Wu locked up. The guards line of sight changed every few minutes, giving them opportunity to sneak past if they timed it right.

"Most likely,' he whispered back. "Sure, it's the first one we're checking out, but just be hopeful it's the right one. I'm not sure Wu can wait much longer if what my mom said is true." Noticing the guards had finally looked away at just the right time, Lloyd said to her, "We're gonna sprint past, on three, two-"

"Wait a sec." She tugged on his sleeve to stop him from moving. A dejected look was on her face as she fumbled with her hands. "I know this isn't the time and place for this, but I just needed to get this off my chest."

He groaned but managed to speak to her politely. "I know you're probably upset at getting kidnapped and revealing important information about us to the enemy. But if you think all _this_ is your fault, it's not."

"I know it's not," she said. "It's my power I'm worried about. I had it down, now it's acting up. What if…what if it happens at a crucial moment when we really need it?"

Lloyd eased up as he noticed how strongly this was affecting her. If this continued on it would hold her back for good. She was completely terrified and what was to come. 'Maybe it might help if I told her,' he thought. 'I'm technically the Sensei until we get Wu back, plus he was going to tell her eventually, right?'

"Maria, look." He swallowed his doubts and took his hood off for a sec to look her in the eyes better. "When it comes to our elemental powers, there comes a time when we have to do more than keep our feelings in check to control them. There's a struggle in us that's different for each of us; a personal barrier that keeps us from reaching our true potential that we have to face at some point.

"A while back when we got really mad at each other, Wu told me what yours was." Her eyes began widening in suspense, she gave off an aura of anxiousness as he finally said, "You put false hope in yourself. You know your limits and capabilities, but you don't have full confidence in what you can do. That's all you need to get stronger and master your powers, you need to have hope."

Her face was blank, she was silent until she whispered, "Run."

Swiftly, she ran straight down the path to the cell, ignoring the risk of being seen. Stunned at her recklessness for a moment, Lloyd slipped his hood back on and quickly followed after. He glanced at the Vermillion at every chance he got, ensuring they hadn't spotted them yet. Thankfully, they hadn't noticed them; they weren't as hyper vigilant as he thought. He managed to catch up with her and pulled her to shelter behind a pile of rocks.

"I'm sorry, did I say you could run out into the open like a maniac!" he scolded.

"What?" she shrugged. "I had hope in my choice, they weren't paying attention and I just started running. We got lucky, didn't we?"

"Just come on." He grabbed her arm, preventing her from pulling another stunt like that, as they walked down the path, a wooden hut coming into view. They approached the entrance, took a step back and kicked the door open. "It's empty." He sighed as the cell before them was bare and untouched. "I thought he would be here."

"Oh, he was," a voice answered from behind them. They turned to see Raggmunk pushing a sleeping Wu on a wheelchair, all tied up. Blunck carried a tray of food and spoke between bites, "He was on a lunch break with us! Don't worry, he's been good so far. But things _could_ change."

They unsheathed their weapons and got into fighting stances. "If you hurt him," Lloyd threatened.

"Him?" Raggmunk asked, pulling out a blade of his own. "I'd be more worried about yourselves!"

"Yeah, you and all of your Ninja buddies are gonna pay for getting us stuck on this lame babysitting job!" Annoyed, Maria smacked the food out of his hands, spilling it on the floor. Enraged, Blunck pulled out his sword and charged at them. "Now you've crossed a line! You're in big trouble now!"

Lloyd got in between and blocked the attack, the two clashing swords as Raggmunk ran off with Sensei Wu. The two were unable to manage to lay a hit on the other until the Green Ninja stepped out of the way and sent a swift uppercut to the snake's jaw. He stepped back in pain and open, giving Lloyd a chance to grab his arm and throw him over them, into the jail cell. He locked the door and quickly ran after the other general.

Raggmunk had been heading towards a cliff, the wheel chair beginning to roll out of his grasp as the path got rockier. The two Ninja had been close on his tail and stopped as he was halted by the ledge. He held Sensei over the ledge and threatened, "Take another step and I drop the old man!"

"You wouldn't dare!" Maria shouted.

"Maybe…maybe I would!" He flashed them an evil grin before pushing the wheelchair over the ledge, the helpless man falling into the chasm. The Ninja quickly ran after him and jumped down into that deep chasm with him. The handlebars were inches away from Lloyd's grasp, he could almost pull him to safety.

Then everything came to a halt. They couldn't feel themselves breath, but they didn't suffocate. They could still think; the two shared the same thoughts of what force could've caused this anomaly. The wondered when it would end just as they began inching forward, slowly they regained their normal speed.

Lloyd snatched the bars as Maria grabbed ahold of his leg with one hand, the other latched onto a vine with her neko-te. Sensei Wu dangled from the tight but weak grasp of the rope. The Pink Ninja pulled herself up a bit to peek if Raggmunk was there and found nothing. With the coast being clear, she pulled her body onto solid ground and carefully pulled her brother and teacher to safety.

Panting, he said, "Nice work, bud. I forget you're pretty strong at times." She winked in gratitude, getting a chuckle out of both of them. He turned his attention back towards his resting uncle and smiled. "You're safe, you're finally safe."

Just then, a net came from out of nowhere and ensnared them both. They were tangled up in it and with each other. They struggled to undo it as the ground below them began to crumble. It gave away under their combined weights as they lost their footing and eventually fell into the dark chasm.

* * *

For a while, Zane kept going over areas he already scanned to see if Borg had come up again. He did for a moment, but watched it vanished before his eyes. Perhaps P.I.X.A.L disappeared in a similar fashion; there for one moment and suddenly gone the next…or taken from him. Where she had gone still eluded him, she wouldn't leave him purposefully for a long period of time without good reason or without informing him she would be leaving.

He was alone, and just like with his father, he hadn't realized it until it was too late. The others we're still on their own missions, contacting them would be counter productive to their stealth tactic and ruin the whole-

"Move your arm!"

"I can't, it's stuck in your hair! Would a haircut hurt you?"

Voices began approaching him through the tall grass, though it was not inherently a threatening presence, it alerted him enough to prepare his shurikens. They came closer and closer, streaks of pink and green hobbling to him. He prepared to make the first strike when he recognized them. "Lloyd? Maria?"

They were tangled in a mesh of net, limiting their range of motion. In unison they said, "Zane," before falling over face down. He quickly began sawing away the net, careful not to nick them with his weapon. When he had freed their arms, they began assisting in pulling it away. "What happened to the two of you?"

"We found Wu, but lost him," Maria answered, as they stood up. "He was right there and we lost him."

"How about you? Any luck finding Cyrus Borg?" Lloyd asked.

"I located him, but I lost the signal. I was also close to achieving my mission but failed," he sighed. He suddenly perked up as he felt a familiar presence nearby. "I sense Jay and Cole are nearby."

"You sure about that?"

"Bring it on, you Vermillion Dukes!" Jay's voice taunted from afar.

"Yup, pretty sure."

The trio ran to the source of the sound, the radiant light of the egg pods leading illuminating their path. The clang of metal grew louder as their entrance and escape route came into view, speckled with the vibrant reds and oranges of Vermillion Warriors. Waves of Vermillion came pouring in and rushed to the top, Jay and Cole were seen pushing them back. "Hey guys," Jay shouted over to them, "I know it looks like we got spotted and are outnumbered by these guys...heh, well it's cause we _are!"_

"Our friends need our help!" Lloyd pulled out his pristine blade, ready to charge in.

"What about Cyrus Borg?" Zane asked.

"No time. It's like what Wu says, 'never put off tomorrow what can be done today!'" He ran into the collision, the Spirit Ninja following right after with her own weapon in hand.

"I hope we're putting off the right thing," he murmured hopeful to himself. Zane ran forward and shot a stream of ice at the ground, halting the snakes in their place. He threw his shurikens at them with one throw, rendering them to their helpless snake form.

At the same time, the five used their spinjitzu to knock off their foe. The colors whirling around rapidly as they closed in on the snakes. In the midst of the attack, they bounced them off of each other and launched them over the side. They stopped when their wasn't a single enemy in sight, tired and worn.

"Did we get them all?" Cole asked.

"I think so," Lloyd said while catching his breath. "Maybe it's over for now."

 _CRACK! CRUNCH!_

The shattering of what sounded like glass caught their attention. Down below the pods bursted like firecrackers, snakes slithering out to the armor of the fallen Vermillion and forming their bodies. The Ninja gasped and backed up at the oncoming enemy, footsteps approaching them on their side.

A wicked chuckle escaped Raggmunk's fangs as he came closer to them, Blunck following close. "Oh no, Ninja. I'm afraid it's not over 'for now.' However, it is over for _you!"_

"Run for it!" They quickly headed up to escape, Vermillion snapping at them trying to attack.

"I got an idea," Jay said as they reached the top, "Cole and I got the workers out of here. We can just ditch this place and head to safety!"

"But we need to find Wu!" Lloyd protested.

A familiar presence, faint and fading, came from above. Trembling with fear, he pointed upwards at a dark blimp that streaked across the dim morning sky. "I think I know where he is."

They others looked to where he pointed and were shocked. "He's up there?!" Maria asked. "With the Time Twins?!"

"Zane, cover us!" Quickly acting on the Green Ninja's orders, he froze a thick ice dome over the entrance to defend them. "Ok, if Wu is with Krux and Acronix, maybe Kai and Nya are with them, unless anyone has heard otherwise." Murmurs of "no" and "I forgot about them," rang out from them. "Then our best bet now is to head back to the temple to regroup."

BANG! BANG!

A boulder crashed into the dome, followed by a swarm of larger and heavier boulders. The dome began cracking under the pressure and shattering. "Hurry, we gotta go now!" The Ninja began running away while Zane stood perfectly still. His scanner started whirring as the image of Borg popped up, far off in the distance on the other side of the swamp…and he was ok.

"What're you doing?! We trying to get out of here _today,_ Zane!" Jay's voice pulled him back to reality.

"It's Cyrus Borg," he told them. "I've picked up his signal, I must retrieve him!"

"You can't! There's a million Vermillion out there!" Lloyd cried out. "You'll never stand a chance!"

"He's right," Jay agreed, "you'll never be able to save him by yourself." He ran over to Zane's side and put and arm around his shoulder. "That's why I coming with you." The others shared looks of confusion, to which he quickly defended, "Hey, we're Ninja, saving people is what we do."

"It is, that's why we're gonna save Borg," the young leader said. The crumbling of ice snapped their heads upward in the direction. The dome's cracks began spreading and creating smaller fragments of ice that shook under the weight of the other pieces. "Everyone, take cover!" he shouted as he dove behind a pile of rocks, the others quickly following his lead and covering their heads as the dome came crashing down.

A thick cloud of ice and dust made it impossible to see for a moment. It began lifting slowly as faint voices came close to where they hid. They pressed themselves against the stones as Raggmunk and Blunck came to observe the escape route and the _Destiny's Shadow_. The Ninja held their breaths until the pair finally left along with the thundering footsteps of their army following their path.

"What luck," Jay said as they poked their heads out from their hiding place. "They left and took their minions with them."

"But they're all heading to the dome where Cyrus Borg is," Zane pointed out.

"I said 'what luck,' not 'good luck,' Zane."

"Well, this is just great," Cole groaned. "The second they see us, they'll take us down."

"Not if we blend in," Lloyd said. He picked up a vermillion helmet that was unused and forgotten. His smile gave away he had a plan. "We can walk right up there and save him! You guys ready for this?"

They all replied, "No."

* * *

The armor stuck to them in the most unpleasant way. Apparently, Vermillion sweat and quite a lot as it slid off a few times when they were putting their disguises together. Thankfully, it stayed on as they walked up to the dome where Vermillion Warriors were stationed outside, keeping watch for the Ninja as they slipped right past them. They kept eye contact to a minimum and didn't say a word; it was heavily implied they weren't the talkative kind of snakes.

The Ninja cautiously entered the dome and closed the door behind them. The room had no guards and was empty as a whole. A wave of relief came about them knowing they were closer to Borg. "Well, that was easy," Cole commented.

THWACK!

A rock hit him square in the face, knocking him down. "Onto the bridge!" a familiar voice cried out. It belonged it Cyrus Borg, an enraged one at that as he wielded a cane and swung it in defense. He rolled his wheeled chair towards them, throwing another rock at Jay. " _FREEDOM!"_ he cheered while knocking down the last of the Ninja standing and prepared to attack Lloyd.

"Stop, we're not Vermillion!" Maria cried out.

"I know a snake when I see one!"

"Mr. Borg, it's us!"

He stopped his attack and observed them closer. To confirm their identity, Lloyd quickly removed his helmet. "Ninja, you came to rescue me!" He smiled and looked over to the Pink Ninja. "I see you made it out safely, and you did come back to help."

"It's nice to see you're ok, Mr. Borg," she chuckled.

"Come on, we have to get out before we're discovered," Lloyd ordered.

"Well, hang on," Jay interrupted. "Why did Krux and Acronix kidnap you anyway?"

Cole rolled his eyes. "Duh, pay attention, Jay, we know why. They took all of the builders to outfit their army."

"Not Mr. Borg," Maria disagreed. "They wanted him to build this apparatus thing."

"She's right," Borg confirmed, "they forced me to create something much more sinister." He rolled over to the wall where a lever stuck out; he pulled it as the blinds uncovered an window that peeked into a workshop. There, at the center of the room stood a giant, snakelike mech of some sort, bridges circling it as Vermillion walked back and forth to prep it for whatever reason.

"I've heard them call it the Iron Doom, Krux and Acronix's ultimate weapon."

"You designed _this?"_ Zane asked.

"No, a blacksmith did. I am responsible for that piece," he sighed as he pointed at a clock like mechanism that was at the core of the Iron Doom. "You see, it's a-"

"-a nano fused neomotnic power source," Zane continued on. "According to my calculations, it creates an energy displacement that's sufficient enough for…oh, dear. Temporal voyage."

"Temporal voyage?" Cole asked.

"Time travel," Jay clarified. "Temporal means time, duh. Pay attention, Cole."

"When combined with the power of all four Time Blades, it releases an energy that can allow Krux and Acronix to take all of these Vermillion Warriors anywhere in time," Borg explained. "But I know a way to stop it from happening. During my assembly, I programmed in a secret back door, self destruct code, but I never had a chance to input it. They watched me constantly, like a hawk."

"No problem, just give us the code and we'll put it in," the Lightning Ninja said.

An embarrassed look came across Borg's face. He looked away as he spoke. "Thing is…I can't quite remember the code."

"Remember when I said it was no problem? _That's a huge problem!"_

"It's a long sequence of numbers that I committed to the deep recesses of my brain" the inventor explained. "Perhaps if I looked at the keypad, it would jar the figures to the front of my brain."

"That settles things, you have to come with us," Lloyd declared. The inventor gave a quick nod before following after the Ninja. They headed to the entrance to sneak in when a hiss came from behind them.

"Going somewhere?" Blunck asked.

They stood frozen at the sight of Raggmunk and Blunck, a small army following their lead. They were unsure of their next move; getting by the other Vermillion was easy because they were mindless and didn't seem to possess much independent thought. In other words, the Warriors were brain dead. Blunck and Raggmunk could actually talk, they were smarter and had them easily outnumbered.

"He said, 'going somewhere, egghead?'" Raggmunk repeated his partner's words.

"Actually, I didn't say egghead, but that's a nice touch!"

With no one being able to think of what to do next, Cyrus rolled over to them and made small talk. "Yes, I was hoping to examine my apparatus on the factory floor."

"Why would you do that?" Raggmunk pressed. "To _sabotage_ it?"

"On the contrary," Borg replied calmly. "I came to ensure it's properly installed. Just imagine what Acronix and Krux would do to me if it wasn't…or what they would do to _you_ if it doesn't work."

The generals shared nervous looks at the terrible thought. "We should let him inspect it!" Blunck blurted out.

Cyrus gestured toward the Ninja, giving them a quick look of reassurance. "I asked these gentlemen to escort me down, but they didn't quite respond."

"Of course not! You can't control the hive mind!" The orange snake put his hand on his temple as his eyes glowed red, attempting to control them as he did with the other Vermillion. "Vermillion, take him to the Iron Doom."

The Ninja quickly "responded" to his command and began escorting Borg to the weapon. They hid their faces as to not be recognized by them. It was all going according to plan as Raggmunk snatched Maria's shoulder. She let out a squeak, alerting the others, while she did her best not to turn around and face him.

"Vermillion Warrior, what's that sticking out from your helmet?" She trembled as she felt him tug at her hair that had been poking out from the tight space of the helmet. The guys gestured for her to stay calm and keep quiet. "I asked you what is sticking out from your helmet?!"

Fed up with the tension, Blunck stomped over and snatched the armor piece off her head, releasing her thick curls. She turned as they gasped at the sight of her. "You're a woman!"

"Uhh…it's a miracle!" she shouted before joining the others. "Sorry, our cover's blown."

"Vermillion," the generals ordered, "attack!"

They charge forward, cornering the Ninja against a wall. In a flurry of light, they spun into their spinjitzu tornados and yelled, "Ninja-go!" They quickly changed back into their suits and began pushing back as many Vermillion as they could, protecting Borg from the attack.

"Hold on," Lloyd shouted over the struggle. "You guys hear that?"

The roar of a vehicle's engine grew as a blue car came crashing in. It drove into the Vermillion, rendering them helpless. The top popped open with the elusive Samurai X jumping out and landing before the Ninja. "Cyrus Borg, Ninja, I am relieved you are safe," he said in his robotic, monotone voice. "I've been looking for you."

"How did you find me?"

"And how are you alive?" Cole asked. "We saw you blow up back at the temple."

"I hacked into Zane's scanner. He located you and I came. Let's get you home." The samurai began pushing Borg's wheelchair into the car and loading him in when Zane stopped him.

"Wait, we need Cyrus Borg to input a code to disable the Iron Doom!"

"Challenge accepted." The top snapped close as the vehicle drove at great speeds to head up the platform, leading up to the Iron Doom's core. Thundering footsteps and slithering sounds approached the Ninja. The Vermillion regained themselves and charged at them.

"Stop them, we need to buy time!" Lloyd shouted. The Ninja propelled themselves upwards with the airjitzu, ready to attack as the Green Ninja noticed something was off. "Uh, where's Maria?" He frantically looked around until he noticed a pink figure at the bottom, snakes approaching her with weapons at the ready.

"Hold on," Jay told him. "Hey, Pinky! Do that clock thingy!"

"What're you talking about?" she shouted back as she backed up against the Iron Doom. "You mean where I attract you with the clock? You hate that!"

"Just get in the middle of those guys and do it!"

Reluctantly, she pulled out the glass clock from her bag and did a front flip to land in the center of the coming mob. In midair, she had placed her hand on the blue dot and released it the second she touched the ground. Feeling the familiar pull, Jay quickly summoned lightning in his fists and let himself go to the force of the clock. He shocked snakes into a paralyzed state as he grazed them on his way down and, unlike previous times, he caught himself before crashing into anything.

Cole took this opportunity to jump down and deliver a strong earth punch, sending the Vermillion flying and crashing down in defeat. "How's it going up there so far?" he called up to who ever could answer them.

"We need a little more time!" Zane's voice answered back. "He's trying to remember, we just need more time!"

"Well, hurry up!" the Blue Ninja yelled in frustration. "It's not like this could get any harder!"

The Green Ninja jumped off the ramp, shooting down any surrounding Vermillion with energy beams. He quickly tackled a large Vermillion down, thrusting his blade through the center to break it apart. He was snatched by another bulking Vermillion and rendered helpless in its tight grip. "Maria," he choked out, "do me! Hurry!"

The pull of the clock began overpowering the strength of the snake, but it fought back and refused to let go. Frustrated, the Spirit Ninja tried once more but stood on the other side of a wooden tower. She released her hand and to her success, the snake was pulled with Lloyd and shattered on impact as it was far too big to slip through the spaces of it like Lloyd could. The force of the blow had the tower knocked over into the wooden ramp; it began crashing down onto any Vermillion that had began attempting to make their way to Zane, Borg and the samurai.

"Please, tell me you guys got the code in!" the young leader pleaded.

"Just a few hundred more digits!"

"You gotta be kidding me!" Jay let out a frustrated yell. "These things just keep coming, can this get any worse?"

Above them, a hatch opened in the workshop's ceiling, an eerie blimp hovering over as it began its decent. The Ninja gave a quick look to Jay as he returned it. "Don't. Say. A word."

"Forget it, we've got a job to do!" the Earth Ninja said.

The snakes began regaining their humanoid form and stood tall, their eyes flashing red. They began walking towards the Ninja…but they didn't acknowledge them. They marched in two uniform lines into the Iron Doom, even the generals, until there wasn't a single Vermillion yet.

"I'm officially confused, what's happening?" Maria asked.

"I'm not sure!" A flash of light caught Lloyd's eye, to which he pointed and yelled, "Look!"

Two distinct figures, the Hands of Time, had used their Time Blades on the Iron Doom. They struck the giant rust colored hands of the apparatus with the blades; in turn it began to glow with each of the four colors that represented them. With the energy coursing through the mech, it began literally roaring to life, knocking Zane, Samurai X, and Borg over the side. The three able Ninja quickly used airjitzu to catch them mid air while the Iron Doom's apparatus began spinning wildly.

A beam of life shot from it and into the sky, creating a vortex in the hazy skies. The Ninja could only stare in shock, their worst fears coming true before their eyes and taking to the heavens, somewhere in the past. Nothing they could do would stop this monster, all hope was lost…until a dragon came into view.

It was unlike any dragon they've seen as it possessed two heads and attributes of Nya's water dragon and Kai's fire dragon. It swooped down to pick up speed, giving them a quick glance at the riders. Kai and Nya themselves holding onto Wu for dear life, desperation on their faces. They tried to reach out to them, perhaps even try to accompany them, but they had already reached the sky once more and in a burst of a blazing light, they were gone.

"Nya…" Jay tried to hold back tears as he reached out.

"Kai. Where did they go?" Cole wondered.

"More like when," Lloyd whispered.

Breaking the silence, Jay ran out of the workshop. He screamed at the top his lungs, emotion overcoming him. "Kai! Nya!" Tired, he fell to his knees crying. "Why…? Why did they go after them and risk their lives like that?"

The other Ninja came slowly to him to comfort him as a dry voice answered his plea. "It was the only way to save Wu." From behind them, a man clothed in red with ash dark hair and matching mustache leaned on a woman. She, too, had dark hair that came down in long smooth waves, and wore clothes as blue as the sea.

"Oh, ok then," Jay sniffled. "Who the heck are you guys?"

"I'm Maya," the woman said. She pointed at the man. "This is my husband, Ray. We're-"

"Kai and Nya's parents!" Lloyd finished. "Your portrait was in the museum."

"Our children had to follow Krux and Acronix," Ray weakly explained. "They possess the Reversal Blade, it'll undo the effects of Sensei Wu's aging."

"We can't leave them in the past by themselves!" Cole turned to Borg and pleaded, "You have to build another time machine. They need our help."

"I can't," he sadly replied.

"Ohh, I get it," the Blue Ninja beamed. "That's just business talk for 'it'll cost you.' Don't worry guys, I got this. I did save a nice, crisp tenner that might change your mind."

Maya stopped Jay from pulling out his money. "That's not it at all. The Time Blades were the power source to allow time travel to happen. No Time Blades, no time travel." A hacking cough interrupted the conversation. Ray bent over and trembled as he coughed his heart out.

"What's wrong?" his wife asked, concerned.

"On the ship," he wheezed, "when had Acronix hit me. He had a Time Blade and something happened."

Zane gave him a quick body scan to find the issue. When he was finished, he reported, "Accelerated physical deterioration. Rapid loss of bodily functions. You were hit with a time punch,too."

"And there's no cure for that, expect the Reversal Blade," the Earth Ninja said.

"That is if our children can bring it back and return in time."

* * *

What felt like forever had past by them. No signs of Kai and Nya's return happened and Ray was getting older and weaker from his condition. They only stood and watched the Borg blimp go by, excluding Jay who pressed Samurai X to reveal his true identity. No matter the case, they tried not to lose hope or worry too much on the situation at hand.

"What if they don't come back?" Maria pondered. "What if they cause a butterfly effect and ruin everything unintentionally?"

Jay arched an eyebrow at her. "Our friends are somewhere in the past with twin mad men and you're thinking about butterflies?"

"It's a theory," Zane explained. "A concept that if one small thing is changed, the effects can have an impact on a bigger scale. In other words, change one thing, change everything."

"I don't believe it," he scoffed as he looked up at the blimp as it vanished into thin air. His eyes widened as the others gasped in fear. "Ok, I'm believing in it now."

"It's not stopping there," Ray spoke while pointing to the city in the distance. It began shifting and warping into a downgrade version of Ninjago City. It was now old and dull instead of the shining and proud form it once had just a second ago. "My worst fear has come true, the past has been changed."

A yelp came from Borg as he stared at his bare wrist. "My Borg Watch is gone! It was just here!"

"What's happening?" Jay asked.

"As I said, the past has been changed." The blacksmith's voice grew older in age as did his hair. "You're watch doesn't exist because your technology doesn't exist. No more computers, no tv, no…"

"Zane!" Lloyd's cry turned their attention towards a deactivated Zane on the ground. He no longer possessed his titanium exterior or white gi. Lifeless in plain white and false human skin, they ran to his side to try and help him. But their was nothing they could do but stare at their dead friend.

"He's gone," Cole trembled. Frustrated, he punched a nearby tree, knocking it down into a bog. "I swear, when I see those fake Elemental Masters…"

"Hang on," Maria interjected, her face pale as she frantically searched her bag. "The clock is gone…I'm changing, too!"

Lloyd held his breath, his blood running cold. "No, only technology is being affected. This has nothing to do with you. I'm sure you dropped it somewhere-"

"Open your eyes, Lloyd!" Her scream echoed in the swamp, a silence following after as she struggled to speak again. "Ninjago City is no different than my hometown;it's a low tech town now. If there's no advanced tech, that means no museum filled with magical artifacts found at the bottom at the ocean as Dr. Saunders said!

"Do you understand what I'm saying now? In a few minutes, I'll be back home. The worst part is…" Tears flooded her eyes as she bunched up the skirt of her gi in her fists. "…the worst part is I'll be far away from you, and I won't remember you enough to miss you and go looking for you! I won't care enough about any pain you may be in! We won't miss each other together…"

Tears from the young Sensei's eyes dripped as well at the realization. Their other mission would never take place, even though peace would remain, their lives would not be complete. They needed each other, that's the reason they found the other. They were destined to be together and they still would.

"That won't happen," he claimed, pulling her in for a hug. "I don't care if you forget me, there's nothing that could make me forget someone like you. Even if you forget, I'll find you. You promised to stay by my side when I became a Sensei," his voice began cracking, "I'm holding you to that promise."

She hugged back tightly as she cried into his shoulder. Jay scooted over and cleared his throat, breaking apart the moment. "I don't mean to ruin this touching moment, but you might wanna look at your hair."

They broke from each other's grasp and noticed the Pink Ninja's signature curl began fading back to its original soft brown. It stopped halfway and stayed like that for a moment. "How long has it been doing this?"

"Like in the middle of Lloyd's part of that scene," Jay explained. "I would've told you but you guys would've cried harder. Plus it started slowing down, maybe it's a sign."

They all stared at lock of hair, waiting to see what it would do next and tell about their future. In a blink, it began regaining its vibrant pink shade. "It's back!" she cheered. Her eye brows furrowed as she searched inside her bag and gladly pulled out the glass clock.

"Guys, look!" Cole pointed towards the old city as it had returned to its former glory. They saw the Borg Blimp flying proudly over the skies of Ninjago City. "It's all coming back!"

"What's coming back?" a robotic voice asked from behind them. Overwhelmed, they immediately ran over and hugged Zane. He too was revived to his titanium Ninja form.

"My watch is back!" Borg laughed. "This is good, everything is fixed!"

A groan followed by a string of ramblings cut through the joyous celebration. Ray grew delirious as Maya held him close to her. "Not everything," she mourned. "He's close to his end."

"There's hope," Zane comforted. "Kai and Nya re proving themselves to be successful so far, they shouldn't be far from us. Considering the rate of change that happens to our present compared to what they do in the past, they should appear-"

A pair of screams and a splash in the swamp finished the nindroid's sentence. The Smith siblings surfaced with the Reversal Blade in hand and rushed to shore and to their father. "What'd we missed?" Nya asked.

Jay quickly summarized as best as he could. "You left and we met your parents. Things changed and Maria and Lloyd had a deep heart to heart. Things changed and got better. You two came back and your dad's dying."

"Not anymore." Kai held the blade to his father, the golden light spreading across his body. His hair began regaining it's dark color, his wrinkles faded from his skin. Ray's eyes suddenly shot open as the light faded away.

He stood and hugged his children, the others celebrating at their victory. The moment ended as Cole asked, "Hang on, where's Wu?"

A sudden wave of guilt came over the fire and water siblings. "He's still on the Iron Doom with Krux and Acronix," Kai trembled. "He held them back so we could make it out of the time vortex… He didn't."

"We don't have a Sensei anymore," Nya said.

"Yes, we do." Jay cut through and it a hand on Lloyd's shoulder. A proud look on his face as he said, "Our Sensei is standing right here, and we're ready to listen."

"W-what?" Lloyd stammered at the sudden change of respect.

"He's right, Sensei Lloyd," Kai agreed, handing the Reversal Blade to him. "It has to be you, it always was you."

Lloyd was in shock at this. Everything up until now, he was only a Sensei in training; they deemed him that themselves and insisted on keeping it that way. Now they looked to him, and it wasn't inherently because of Wu's absence. They deemed him ready, they _knew_ he was ready. He saw that in their eyes as he looked upon their smiling, reassuring faces.

With his trembling hands, he grabbed the blade and his future. "Sensei Lloyd," he whispered to himself. It had nice sound to it…but it was more than that. It completed it. His days of being a student were over; the long awaited path had become clear to him.

He spoke in a more authoritative tone and faced his students."Listen up, first we have to get rid of this. It's too dangerous. Then we start searching, it'll take our combined strengths to find Sensei and bring him home. And we won't stop until we know the answer to our only question: where is Wu?"

* * *

 **FINALLY!**

 **See ya around for the finale!**

 **Next time on Ninjago:Legend Reborn…**

 **Second Strike Part 1- Hopeless**

 **Until then, God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good.**


	46. 45: Second Strike-Hopeless

**Disclaimer: You know the drill: what's the Hageman's is the Hageman's. What's mine is mine.**

 **Now, this isn't the official last chapter but I'd like to say a special something before we begin.**

 **Two years ago I posted this story and posted chapters speedy fast. I was so giddy from just one review, I was told at a young age I had a knack for telling stories and it made me happy that others thought so,too and it wasn't my teacher just flattering 5 year old me. But I've grown in that time and have improved my writing to give you guys something enjoyable. After delays, sick days, exam and test studying, school work balancing, and raccoons taking out my wifi when I was working on this big chapter, we're finally here. The end of the beginning, and the beginning of the end. It's been legendary, this whole journey.**

 **Also, my previous chapter, the King's Promise takes place after all of my Hands of Time chapters. I did more explaining there so hop over there quickly if you are completely confused by any references, etc, etc.**

 **NOW LET'S….**

 **FLUFFING…**

 _ **GO!**_

* * *

 **Chapter 45: Second Strike Part 1- Hopeless**

 _The Ninja panted as they headed up the stairway. The light shining from above being their only guide to their final destination. The seven of them reached the top, some falling to their knees trying to catch their breath after their long journey. They rested for a moment, giving them time to notice the place they now stood._

 _A faded pink spirit symbol was engraved in the center of the pristine marble altar. A small brick pedestal hugged the ground tightly in the center of the symbol. From above, the light shone brighter and pushed away any surrounding shadows far from them. They felt its welcoming and warm embrace as it seemed to get closer to them, beckoning them to carry out their task._

" _So this is it, huh?" Kai said as he pulled out his red gem. "All those fights, all that training. We're finally here."_

 _Cole stepped beside him with his black gem in hand. "Yeah, we just need to do this and Onryō will be no more."_

" _It's kinda sad when you think about it." Nya, along with Jay, had stepped closer to the center of the circle with their similar blue gems ready to be used. "I just wonder if we can use these again. Then there's the thrill of fighting all those demons and doing things we never dreamed possible."_

" _I'm gonna miss seeing the future," Jay sighed as he looked down on the tiny stone in his hand. "It was fun being a step ahead of the enemy."_

" _Or a step ahead of your opponent in a video game. Isn't that what you primarily used it for, Jay?" Zane joked, removing the white stone from his pocket. They chuckled a little at his joke while he turned to Lloyd. "Will you miss having it if this is the last time?"_

 _With a smile on his face, Lloyd carefully removed the green gem wrapped around his neck as a choker. It reverted back to a simple stone that he held gently in his grip. "I won't miss a thing," he told them. "The whole journey was fun, but I won't miss it." He reached out a placed a hand on Maria's head, making her smile. "I'll never miss a single moment we went through, because I'll always have the person that made it worthwhile by my side forever."_

 _She grabbed his hand and held it briefly in hers. "Me, too," she agreed, "I won't miss it, because we all did this. This isn't my destiny I'm fulfilling, we're fulfilling_ our _destiny that brought us together." She let go and pulled out her pink gem and the glass clock from her bag, placing the clock carefully on the pedestal._

 _It locked into place and began raising up, the seven colored dots lighting up. They quickly stood in position that correlated with the dots on the clock: red, black, light blue, dark blue, white, green, and pink at the top. Holding out their gems, the light from above shined a beam of light into the clock and made its hands move. The light within spread out and shined on each of the Ninja, enveloping them in a pure light._

 _Starting from Kai, whose gem began glowing and turning his light red, the hands began ticking as it followed where the light went. It moved on from Ninja to Ninja, slowly and gently. As it came to Lloyd, he looked over at Maria as she waited patiently. Of anyone to deserve this the most, it was her. She had come so far from being a scared and unsure person into being a strong Ninja._

 _She noticed his stare and offered a small smile, simple and sweet. He mouthed to her, "Your dad would be so proud," as the light came over to her and began the same process. She nearly teared up when she realized he had said, and opened her mouth to-_

 _ **SCREECH!**_

 _A loud shriek pierced the calm and made the Ninja cover their ears from the sharpness of the sound. It quickly ended as the ground began shaking, the light growing dimmer. The shadows surrounding them came crawling back as darkness._

" _What's going on?!"_

" _I can't find the cause of this!"_

" _The clock is missing!"_

" _Everyone, listen!" The Green Ninja shouted over their fearful cries. "Forget the clock and gems, we gotta get out of here!" He ran down the steps, the other following close behind him as the shaking grew to that of an earthquake's magnitude._

" _Lloyd! Wait! Lloyd, I'm stuck!"_

 _They crashed into each other and nearly fell down the steps, had they not caught themselves in time. From the top of the stairs at the altar, the Pink Ninja waved desperately to be helped. Quickly acting, they ran back up and tried to pull her out. Her feet didn't budge the slightest as they tried to pull her out together from her spot._

" _I'm scared, guys. What's going on?" She had began full on crying as she clung to her brother._

" _Look at me! You're gonna be just fine!" he reassured her. "I'm not leaving you here!"_

 _ **CRACK!**_

 _Another rumble came through, breaking apart the ground on which they stood. It was so sudden that they lost their grip and fell. They quickly got back up and found themselves on one half of the altar, Maria was still stuck on the other half all by herself. Behind her a giant glass clock appeared in the sky, the minute hand slowly ticking as the light faded with each tick._

 _ **TICK…TICK…**_

" _We're stuck, too!" Kai shouted._

" _What?!" Lloyd gasped as he found them and himself struggling to move their legs._

 _ **TICK…TICK…**_

" _What do I do? Guys, talk to me!" Maria's distant cries became close to a bloodcurdling scream. "It's hurting me somehow, make it stop!"_

 _ **TICK…**_

" _Use you powers! Just get out of there!" Nya called out to her._

" _They're not working, I can't concentrate!"_

 _ **TICK…**_

 _A final small ray of light began closing in on her as the half of the pedestal they stood on gave way. It had finally tipped over and dropped them off. They fell slowly and helplessly as they watched the final scene right above them; the clock's hand inching over the cracked pink dot._

 _ **BOM! BOM! BOM!**_

 _The clock gave out a ringing sound, almost like a bell tower, as Maria was completely concealed by the darkness. The Ninja fell endlessly, their screams drowned out as they, too, were swallowed by the shadows._

"Seven blessed, seven cursed, destined to be through strife. Through sacrifice was born the Crown of Life. Through despair a kingdom was broken and cursed. Through hope a demon was sealed and thrived did the first. Seven of purity and seven of sin will behold the sacred place. Will the Knights prevail once more or will they fall from grace?"

 _A pink outlined silhouette of Maria appeared above the Ninja, cracks spreading through her body as though she was glass. An inhuman scream was heard as she began shattering, her eyes glowing an electric pink as she tried to salvage the pieces of herself that fell. The shards came crashing down on them, like a storm of daggers. Nothing could be done to save them now._

 _They already reached the ground and laid there, accepting their fate._

* * *

Lloyd shot up from his bed in a cold sweat, his heart pounding inside of his chest. He immediately got up and ran down to Maria's room, a feeling of fear creeping over him. Sliding down the hall and making a sharp turn at the corner, he stopped in front of her door and opened it. To his relief, she laid in a deep sleep on her inflatable bed, unaffected of the ruckus he caused.

A long exhale came from Lloyd's mouth as he walked over and knelt by her side, examining her of any unusual cuts or bruises. His relief grew more when none were visibly seen, but it lasted for only a moment. It had been months since any activity from the demons had occurred. Nothing had happened from Onryō's forces in terms of attacks or sightings. It was though they had gone off the grid completely, which could be a sign of something far worse was to come.

The nightmare he had was the only thing that stuck out as a potential warning. It happened once when Maria had gotten possessed by Oiwa; he had a nightmare where he lost her before eyes just as he did moments ago, and he was helpless to try and stop it from happening. If it was a sign, then they would have to prepare once tomorrow was over. It had to wait until the day after, no exceptions. He wouldn't lose her because they weren't ready, not like with Wu.

A yawn cut through his thoughts, sleep sounded like a wise idea at this point to him. Lloyd got up and began walking back to the door, giving her a final look over his shoulder. She was so peaceful how she slept with no worries but a smile on her face. It became a thing with her now, her smiling occurred more as she trained harder to improve control over her powers. She smiled because she knew she was capable; Maria smiled because she knew she stood a chance for what was coming.

Gently grabbing the door handle and twisting it to soften the sound of the lock clicking in, he tiptoed out of the room. Careful not to have the door squeak as it shut close, he stole one final glance to reassure of her safety and whispered, "Happy 18th birthday, sis."

* * *

 **Far off from Ninjago City…**

Wheezing and trembling as it traversed down the barren path, the cloaked figure headed closer towards his destination. The cut on his chest began stinging again, yet he did not wince at the pain. There was no need to show weakness whether his was alone or not. Never again he would, but only show power. Yes, that's all that needed to be displayed.

He _was_ power. He had it all; those pesky humans would see that and his true worth in time. They'd pay for interfering too long with his plans. They would behold that he was the greatest villain and better than King Onryō. He was better than Seraphina and Onryō put together. He was-!

 **CRACK!**

A vine had fallen from out of nowhere and landed on top of him. Furious, he got up and set it aflame, reducing it to ash. He calmed down as he realized he had reached it: his base. Thorn covered vines had covered it completely, it was lodged deep in sand and stone, but he knew it's true form was hidden deep within. Setting his fist on fire once more, he reached out and touched the nearest vine. The flames danced and quickly spread to the remainder of the building.

It could be seen for miles, as if anyone lived at the bottom of a canyon. With it ablaze, he climbed up to reach to top, unharmed from his own power. The crow's nest peaked through from all the smoke, making him grin. From where he was, he jumped forward, sending a gust of wind that soothed the raging fire. He stuck a perfect landing and observed his base. With it all cooled down and ready for sailing, he summoned a fierce wind to set the sails flying.

The force made the canyon tremble under the strength of the pull. Years of rocks and sand layered tightly were wasted as his base flew out from its place and now hovered above the ground. This was it. His moment was coming.

With preparations complete, he pulled out the clear glass orb from his cloak. "Show me what is to come," he commanded it as he grasped it in his hand. Smoke steamed inside, growing in dark red and purple hues. From inside came two figures; the King and the girl.

The King had appeared in his primitive form, a pathetic mindless beast that thirsted for power he could never truly possess. He was rising once more, ready to claim his victory over the reincarnation of Seraphina. Said reincarnate was a different story; she had scratches that indicated she had fought recently, barely making it out alive. But what captivated him was her eyes. They were fearful and hopefully, but most importantly they possessed the spirit symbol inside them.

"It's coming," he said to himself. "It's finally coming!" He raised his head and cackled, the ship rising from the ground and bursting through the canyon's narrow crevice. The skies began turning a fierce red as the day had come.

"It's finally coming!" He shouted at the top of his lungs for anyone to hear. "Chaos is finally coming!"

* * *

 **BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!**

Lloyd slammed the button on his alarm, and quickly got out of bed to change into his gi. His rushed to the kitchen and found the other Ninja had already finished decorating. Pink balloons were tied in a trio at the corners of the counter. A vase full of forget-me-nots were set in the center, along with a plate of pancakes stacked high that had Maria's favorite toppings.

"Hey sleepyhead," Kai said in a hushed voice. "Forget about the big day?"

"No, I just had a rough time sleeping. Bit of a nightmare, that's all," he explained, trying to cover up the real reason he slept in. "Everything's in order?"

"Affirmative," Zane replied. "Her favorite foods are prepped to be cooked as the day passes, her present is set, and her mother is just outside waiting for the signal."

"No thanks to you, though. How bad was this nightmare you had?" Jay asked.

"Leave him alone, Jay," Nya scolded him. "We all slept a little rough last night, remember?"

Lloyd began to speak but was interrupted by an approaching yawn. They quickly got into position as she shuffled into the room half asleep, her gi sloppily put on and her hair messily tied back. She kept her head down as she pulled up a seat and slammed it down on the counter. "Ok, so what're doing today for training?"

The Ninja shared confused looks before Cole answered her. "There's no training today. Don't you know what today is?"

"If there's no training, then it's a rest and relax day. Which means I'll stay here for a while."

Kai groaned. "No, don't you get it? Today's an important day to you, remember?"

"No, I'm too tired to function, okay? I'm sure it's not a big-"

" _Look up, woman!"_ Jay shouted.

She slowly shifted her head up. "You know, there's a nicer way to get my atten-" She sat up right at the display before her, her eyes now devoid of sleep. "Wha…what is all this?"

"Surprise! Happy birthday!" they cheered.

"You…you remembered." She began tearing up but quickly wiped her eyes dry. "You guys actually remembered! I can't believe you did this, after all we've been going through."

"It's your day, bud," Lloyd said. "Nothing will keep us from celebrating your success, so it's our day off." He looked back at Zane and got a short nod from him. "Plus it turns out someone else had a day off," he turned towards the entrance of the temple and called, "come on in, Mrs. Psyche."

The doors opened up and in walked Elise Psyche, a wide smile on her face as she walked towards her daughter. Maria was stunned and overjoyed at the sight, eventually running to her for a hug. The two trembled in each other's grasp as she whispered, "I love you, mama."

"I love you, too, my baby girl," Elise chuckled as they broke apart. "18 years…just look at you! You're so beautiful."

The Pink Ninja gave a playful wink and grin. "Well, I did have the handsomest dad and prettiest mom to thank for that." She looked back at the Ninja and shook her head. "I can't believe you guys sometimes. Be honest, how'd you get her here?"

"That's top secret," Nya joked. "But we can say she here's for the whole day, and everything else is planned out from morning to midnight."

Maria chuckled and began walking towards the fridge. "Well, I appreciate all you guys are doing for me, so how about I make you breakfast?"

" **No!"**

All six of them had thrown themselves in front of the fridge, guarding it for dear life. Maria stepped back at the sight, they looked ready to fight her which had her confused. Calmly, her mother led her down to sit at the counter. "Sweetie, it's your birthday. You shouldn't lift a finger, now eat your breakfast before it gets cold."

"Yeah, you should totally do that," Lloyd quickly agreed, the others shaking their heads furiously. "Zane made them specially for you with your favorites: rainbow sprinkles, chocolate chips, whipped cream on top and chocolate syrup."

"That's nice," she started, "but I don't put chocolate syrup-"

"It's dark chocolate."

"Well I'll be darned," she said before pulling the dish in and scarfing it down. The fluffy, buttery texture melted in her mouth as a clear and inconclusive thought came into her mind.

Today would the best day of her life.

* * *

 **Deep in the Dying Kingdom…**

Jorōgumo's footsteps echoed against the cold cave walls as she rushed down to the Throne Room. Explosions and screams from the King resonated throughout the whole area. It was satisfying yet alarming at the same time; it was signal of greater things to come but it had began so suddenly. She quickly stopped and stumbled into the room, blinded by the sight before her.

King Onryō roared his heart out, his large body pulsating glowing yellow veins all over. He banged his head against the bars of his prison, making stalactites fall from above. His hands sprung out and clawed at the earth, getting dirt lodged deep in his dark red claws. With a final bellow, Onryō's head dropped instantaneously and laid limp, perfectly devoid of all movement.

Carefully approaching, the spider demon whispered, "Is anyone in here? Kitsune? Harionago? Gashadokuro?"

"Back here," Kitsune's voice replied. He, along with Harionago, peeked out from a pile of rocks they used as a shelter. "He woke up and started acting like this, we were caught in the attack and couldn't do anything."

"And Gashadokuro?"

"He went to the dungeon." They stepped out and stood by her side, observing their slumbering king. "These random outbursts…I suppose it means he'll be freed soon, but it doesn't feel right. It feels forced with the pain he's in."

The young demon spoke up, "I have something else to report. It's rather alarming news, but I swear, I did everything in my power to-"

"Out with it," Jorōgumo snapped.

Harionago cleared her throat and looked her in the eye. "One of my beasts was stolen from my base, a nue. It's very rare and powerful, and I'm truly sorry that such a creature was stolen. But whoever did this didn't stop with me."

Kitsune gave out a nervous chuckle as he rubbed his paws together. "Well, you know that Oracle Orb I stole from one of Seraphina's allies from way back? They took that, too."

"I though Onryō gave you clear instructions to keep that in a safe location." Jorōgumo bared her fang as she bent over to meet with him at eye level. "You took that orb out to play with because you were bored, didn't you?" she accused.

His tails went between his legs as he cowered before her. Before the conversation continued, a black hole appeared in front of Onryō's cage, Gashadokuro's giant scarlet head popping out. He pulled himself out as he had a pained look on his face. "The oni…they almost didn't make it."

"You mean Gozu and Mezu, the two bulking oafs Onryō's stuck down there?" Harionago scoffed. "Those two are walking beefcakes that can move mountains. What do you mean they didn't make it out?"

"They were nearly dead!" His body trembled after that yell, his bones giving off a rattling sound. He tried to maintain a steady breath as he explained. "Kitsune and Harionago told me of the robberies and something came to me. I went back down… _there_ and tried to keep myself undetected from them; I know how rough they get.

"I looked all around and oddly enough I didn't see them approach me, even though they are designated to attack and punish all who were sentenced or break into the dungeon. I found them eventually but it was awful; I saw them sprawled out so helplessly, they were brutally beaten. They could've died…what's worst is that I didn't see him. I didn't see the one who I suspected. Goryō was missing."

The demons stood in shock, nerves began unsettling. Jorōgumo quickly ran over to the stone table and used her dark magic to bring the vision that came across her mind. It lit up and formed a current view of the girl and her protectors. They were all having a good time, laughing and enjoying life when the girl bent over and clenched her stomach.

" _Everything ok, kid? You're not getting sick on us, are you?"_ the one in black asked, concern in his voice.

" _I'm fine, I think it's growing pains."_ She stood straight up and gave them a reassuring smile. _"There's no way I'm getting sick on my birthday, just relax."_

Jorōgumo ended the vision and quickly rushed out of the room. "Where you going?!" Kitsune called to her.

She stopped and poked her head back in. "I'm going to find those humans and warn them. Keep an eye on Onryō and try to keep him stable. Don't let him out under any circumstances."

"You're scaring me," Harionago whimpered. "Please, what's going on?"

"Goryō's back and he's making his move."

* * *

"And then I realized I was flying through the air on a dragon! Just zipping through the clouds like bird!" Maria panted as she told her adventures to her mom, struggling to catch her breath as she explained it all in full detail, the feelings she experienced resurfacing. It was just the two of them in her room, the others insisted on them spending quality time and it was thrilling for her to retell her tales. "It was magical, mama. I felt…strong."

Elise had a hand over her heart as she struggled to understand. "And this was _after_ you escaped being kidnapped? And being possessed by a demon lady?"

"Technically she's a queen that was banished by her own husband, but yeah!" She stood up from her bed and raised a fist in the air. "But the greatest part is I got stronger each time! Isn't that exciting?"

"…no," she faintly answered.

Maria slightly gasped at the answer and looked back at her mother. She was pale had an uneasy look on her face. "Mama," she sat back down, "are you bothered by my role as a Ninja?"

Her mother broke out of her trance and adjusted her messy bun. "I agreed to let you leave Tranquilville to live in Ninjago City, plus I did promise to support you, but this is beyond what I'd expect you to do with your life. It's dangerous and you don't visit like you said and frankly…I'm quite scared."

"Mom, I have to do this. If don't, consequences will follow," the Spirit Ninja explained. "I didn't ask to be reborn like this, but it is what it is. I promise I'm not gonna do something that'll get me killed, but sometimes that's a risk that I can't avoid."

Elise began chuckling and pulled a small picture from her shirt pocket. She handed it to Maria and said, "It's that attitude of yours, so much like your father. He always said, 'Ellie, I promise I won't die and leave you lonely, but if I have to die for you, then I guess I keep and break my promise. I try my best to stay safe for you when I'm on duty, but sometimes that's a risk I can't avoid.'"

Maria took the photo and smiled at the sight. Light reflected off the glossy surface of her father in his police uniform. He carried her mother bridal style in his arms, kissing her on the cheek as she had her head back laughing. "Wow, you two where having a good time." An idea popped into her head; she quickly rummaged through her messenger bag and pulled out her dad's journal, handing it to her mom.

Without asking, her mom flipped through the pages. Her eyebrows knitted with confusion as she got in deeper. "Sweetie, what is this?"

"Dad's journal!" she eagerly replied, unaware of her mother's current expression. "You see, I met with Santa, the real one, and he gave it to me to make me understand what it'd be like if papa was still alive. Interesting story, he's a spirit, too, but a Great Elder! Now what a Great Elder is-"

Her mother stopped her once more, this time with the sound of soft sobbing. She ran out of the room, throwing the book across the room. Maria just stood there, not knowing what had happened. Maybe it was too much for her emotionally that she had to get away. But shouldn't it have made her happy to read a few moments from her father's perspective?

"Everything, ok, bud?" Lloyd's voice pulled her back to reality. He walked over and gave her a quick look over. "You seem kinda down, you feeling alright?"

"Yeah, I'm just thinking. I think I hurt my mom, I showed her my dad's journal and she left crying," she sighed. "Maybe she's not over him and can't handle some reminders of him. It helped me, I thought it would help her."

He put a comforting hand on her shoulder. "It's not your problem, people grieve in their own way and heal in their own way. Give her space and she'll come back, ok?"

"If she's not? Then what do I do? What if she doesn't come back?"

"She will," he assured her. "You're all she has left, she won't abandon you."

 **RUMBLE…RUMBLE…RUMBLE**

"Is that thunder?" Maria questioned while looking at the ceiling. "I thought it was supposed to be sunny today."

"It was," Lloyd shrugged, "but a little storm won't hurt us."

 **KA-BOOM!**

The sudden clap of thunder made them jump and head outside of the temple. The remaining Ninja and Elise stood outside observing the darkening skies. The clouds swirled as the wind picked up to a strong gust, thunder rumbled and flashed spontaneously. "Where'd this come from?" Kai asked.

"According to my sensors, this storm is…oh, my," Zane paused. "This doesn't look good."

"Spit it out, Zane," the Fire Ninja urged. "What's the deal with this?"

"The radar says there was a 0% chance of rain and currently reads as clear skies. This storm is only over the temple and, in a sense, is not naturally occurring."

"Ok, I vote going back into the temple and wait this over," Jay shouted over the winds. "All agree follow me. All opposed, don't die." He quickly headed back to the door, not waiting for anyone else to join him.

 **KA-BOOM!**

A sudden bolt of lightning struck in between the Blue Ninja and the door, sending him back flying into Cole. The team looked back at where the bolt hit as a fire grew, a low growl emerged as did a shadow from within.

"Hey, kid," Cole nervously said to Maria, "you know any demons that can create storms?"

"There's a few," she explained. "Considering what we heard, there's a few animal demons that are associated with storms, but this could be a form of curse that coincidentally have storms and plagues as an extension-"

" _NUE!"_ A creature burst through with that ear piercing scream, alerting the Ninja to jump out of the way, Maria holding onto her mother. The beast faced them, it's mouth dripping with trails of saliva. It's body and head was like a gray monkey bearing fangs, with muscular tiger legs and the tail of a serpent. On all fours, it was twice their size and ready to fight.

"What the heck is that thing?!" Kai shouted. "Come on, kid, you're the expert on demons!"

"A nue," she replied while trembling, "they're rare beasts with little human interaction recorded and follow storm clouds, but this doesn't make any sense. They can't make their own storms from what I've read."

"Well, I guess there's no problem if I do this!" Jay shot a bolt of lightning at it, but instead of shocking it, it absorbed it. In anger, it tackled into him and sent him flying, sliding into the dirt as he descended. He coughed up dust as he brushed himself off. "You said they couldn't make their own storms!"

"They're storm riders, Jay," Maria clarified. "They can't ride a storm without being immune to the thunder and lightning that comes in a storm."

"Oh, ok. Thanks for telling me and showing concern for my safety after it tried to kill me!"

" _NUE!"_ it screeched again as it ran towards them. Nya quickly shot a stream of water, drenching it and pushing it back. As it shook it self dry, Zane followed the attack by shooting ice to freeze it in place. The Ninja and Elise quickly ran back to the temple as they left their weapons inside, but struggled to dowse the fire.

Nya and Zane continuously combined their powers to put it out but there was no visible change. "This isn't working. I don't think this a normal fire, perhaps a curse or something?" Zane questioned.

"Well, come on," Kai said. "It's still a little fire, it can't be that hard." As if it heard him, the flames roared and grew twice their size, changing to a blue-green shade. "I take that back, this is gonna be hard."

 **CRACK! CRUNCH!**

The ice trapping the nue began breaking apart as it had gained consciousness and started freeing itself. It clawed away chunks of ice as it locked onto the Ninja. In a panic, they turned to the Pink Ninja for advice. "Don't look at me, these things are rare and aren't heard of that much!"

"You gotta know something, anything!" Nya pleaded. "Think hard, you must've read something."

"Um…the interactions they had with humans all ended badly," she answered.

They all gave her blank looks. Cole took a breath in before rephrasing Nya's question. "Ok, how about you think of something you read that gives us hope we'll get out of this alive."

"Well, since they only appear with dark storm clouds, it should go away if the clouds did. It's worth a shot."

"Better than nothing," Lloyd said. "So the seven of us will use our dragons to blow the clouds away and it'll get rid of that thing."

"But I can't summon my dragon like you guys can," Maria protested. "What am I supposed to do?"

"Protect yourself and your mom. I know you're capable. We'll be quick." True to his word, they summoned their dragons in an instant and took to the skies. They had their dragons sweep away the clouds with their powerful wings, letting the clear skies into view again.

Below, the nue let out another terrible screech as it was just about freed from its icy hold. Knowing her mother's safety was on her shoulders, the young Ninja stepped forward in a fighting stance as it charged at her. It bared its claws and fangs as it came flying towards, but she was prepared as she pivoted on her foot to vanish from its sight. She grabbed it by the scruff of its neck and threw it on the ground.

Angrily kicking it's limbs out in all directions, it turned its head and snapped at her wrist. Maria quickly pulled back but let it loose in turn, with the nue pinning her down this time. Biting away at the space between its fangs and her face, it inched closer towards the surface of her skin. She felt trails of spit drip down on her face, mixing in with the beads of salty sweat on her forehead. Her mother screamed from the sidelines at the scene, gaining the attention of the nue.

It lurched towards her, ready to feast on its new prey when Maria shot up and aimed a spirit beam at it. "Get away from her!" she shouted as she shot a beam at its tail. The beast let out a howl when the attack made contact and supposedly disintegrated its tail off from it. It limped back in pain as the Ninja rushed to her mom. "Are you ok?"

"What did you do to it?" She shuddered at the thought of what had happened, the scene replaying in her eyes. "Why did you do something so horrible?"

"I didn't mean to, I just wanted to save you! I mean…I didn't think…I could do something like that."

"Maria!" The Ninja hovered gently above before landing by her side. All at once they asked what she did and when she learned to use her powers like that, but she couldn't answer them. She didn't know…she didn't _want_ to know the reason behind this.

 **BOOM!**

A cannon blast from nearby had them duck for cover. A large metal spear pierced the still remaining clouds and smashed into the temple's wall, stone and splinters spraying the air. A shadow came flying overhead, along with the sounds of engines roaring.

"I thought you guys took care of the storm clouds!"

"We tried, but it didn't work!" Nya shouted over the noise. "Just what is going on?"

" _ **NUE!"**_ The creature regained its senses and charged right at the group. They readied themselves as it let out a shriek and leapt off its powerful legs. Instead of focusing on them as they thought, it flipped over them and latched onto the side of their home. A forked tongue shot out from its mouth and wrapped around Elise's waist, whisking her away into the dark storm.

It all happened so fast that they didn't process it at first until they heard her scream. "Mom!" Maria cried as she ran to follow it from the ground. The unseen ship's roar faded away as the storm clouds retreated. They were gone.

Delirious with rage, she continued to run all the way until she fell off the ledge of the island. A tight grip suddenly latched onto her wrist and kept her from falling. Maria looked up and saw her friends holding each other by the ankles in a chain, with Cole holding them all and Lloyd holding onto her. They slowly lifted her up and set her on the ground.

"Hey, bud," Lloyd softly asked, "you ok?"

"…no," she said, her hands shaking with anger. She faced him with tears in her eyes, her face red. "I'm not the _least_ bit ok! My mom just got kidnapped by a dangerous beast that you guys left me to fight on my own. How can I possibly be okay after all that?! And you didn't even try to save her!"

"We exhausted ourselves a little too much to reform our dragons quickly," Zane calmly explained. "We only tried to do what was best and failed. We're sorry."

"Sorry won't cut it!"

"Stop it," the Green Ninja firmly said. "You're upset with good reason, but this isn't a time to turn on each other and point fingers. We have to figure out who did this and find a way to get your mom back."

"Yeah, right," Jay scoffed. "How are we supposed to do that when the temple's door is on fire?!"

"Leave it to me," a raspy voice answered. A silk string of webbing shot down onto the ground from the temple roof. Sliding smoothly down with her hands up in surrender, Jorōgumo landed before the flaming door with a worried look. "I come in peace with the proposition that the Alliance be restored for the time being."

They got into defensive stances as they slowly approached her. "How can we trust you?" Nya questioned. "How can we be sure this isn't a part of some plan Onryō had you carry out?"

"I did offer to remove this curse." She held her hand over the unnatural flames as she closed her eyes. Her hand produced a dark energy that mixed in with the fire and made it vanish. Burned into the door were the words _Second Strike._

"Second strike," Maria whispered. "This is the second big attack you guys brought upon us."

Jorōgumo nodded as she opened the door for them. "Indeed this the Second Strike, but it was not authorized by Onryō. We need to discuss before we go after him. There's something you must know if we are to work together. An old enemy has appeared."

"Who?" the Ninja asked.

"Goryō."

* * *

Elise woke up to the feeling of cold metal being jabbed in her side. She stood up and found herself in a hanging cage, swaying back and forth in the dark room it resided in. Footsteps approached her…but they sounded different. Almost like the hoof steps of a horse or an animal like that.

"For a human, you're quite fair to look at," said a smooth voice behind her. She froze in place as a clawed hand snapped into her view and caressed her face. The rough texture contrasting with the voice of the owner as it kept trying to sway her. "I expect only the best could rebirth Seraphina into this world."

Elise pulled back and faced her captor and his hideous face. "Who are you?"

"Goryō, miss," he said with a bow. "The captain of the ship you now reside in, and former captain of Onryō's guard thanks to your daughter and her pesky followers. Must've been a challenge raising a bratty child like that on your own."

"Maria is a wonderful, kind, lovely young woman," she rebuked. "When she and the other Ninja find me, you'll be very sorry. Also, for your information, it's worth being a single mother when you have a child like her to call your own."

"Say whatever you need to keep calm, because when she steps foot on my ship, she'll be tested." He gave her a sly wink and grin to match. "Although I could make it easier if you cooperated with me, then you'd get your daughter back mostly safe and I can get what I want."

In anger, she spit in his eye. "My love belongs, and always will, to my late husband Christopher. I don't care if this a trick your playing on me or if you truly have feelings for me, I will never agree to be with you."

Goryō sported a false look of hurt as he pulled the cage closer towards his face. Elise clung to the far end as he placed a hand over his heart. "How rude of you to deny me when I pour my heart out to you. I know I may not be as worthy as this Christopher was, but I will be. Once your daughter finishes her test, it won't be long before I become king and have you as my own."

"And I told you that wouldn't happen! Now kindly let go of my cage and leave me alone."

His face turned sour as he let the cage swing wildly, departing from his captor. "Be a stubborn human," he called to her. "I can be just as stubborn, that's why I stand as I do today. I always get what I want."

* * *

The Ninja gathered all their weapons and necessities they needed to go off and find Goryō, but as Jorōgumo had said, they need to talk. She had them gathered in their living room, a grim look on her face. They waited for her to speak which had taken forever until she faced them. "This isn't easy for me to say such secrets known only to demons like me."

"Because you're really old and were there when a lot of this stuff happened?" Cole asked. In return, Jorōgumo shot a thick webbing from her mouth, covering his.

"As I was saying, there's a hidden story of our origins. In a world far from the one we stand in, carved by our wars and sacrifices, our ancestors lived in a realm of constant rebirth and destruction. The first spirits that came were the dragons on the side of life and creation; however, there had to be contrast for balance, which led to the representative of destruction and death, the oni."

They were in awe so far when Kai spoke up. "So that means when you came into the world as a demon, you became related to the oni?"

"The dragon and the oni were merely the first to come into existence, demons, like myself, and spirits were brought into the world and followed their footsteps depending on our rebirth. We are not directly related, but we looked to them as they were the true rulers before we came across this world that was to be named Ninjago," she recounted. "When Onryō came, he asserted his dominance as the new ruler of death and destruction, overthrowing the order of the Oni. It was a new land and he deemed to make it his own, which sent alarm amongst both the spirits and demons."

"Well, if a giant shadow demon came from out of nowhere and called my homeland his new kingdom, I'd be pretty freaked out, too," Nya said. "So Onryō came and took down the oni, was it that big a deal?"

"Indeed, for a common demon like one of the Onryō to overthrow the most powerful of all demons showed he was stronger," Jorōgumo continued. "As his first act as King, he took control of Gozu and Mezu, the only ancient oni residing in this world."

"I've heard about those two." Maria perked up and explained. "Gozu and Mezu are two rare oni brothers only similar to the other. Gozu has an ox head while Mezu has a head of a horse."

Jorōgumo offered a small grin. "You know your history," she replied, her face reforming the frown that she had on previously. "Well, it was alarming when he placed them as mere guards for his new kingdom, it showed his strength was something to be feared. Of course, you've seen King Onryō's power in me and my allies, along with hearing other stories of his might from other sources I presume, but there is still one bit of information left.

"Onryō became King because he took down a being far stronger than he was. Upon seeing signs of him being freed in a forceful and painful way, we began to worry. For you see, the reincarnate and My King somehow now share a bond of strength, which grow together." She looked deep into Maria's worried eyes. "Every time you grew stronger or weaker, the same has been done unto Onryō. Goryō knows this as well that you're the only way he can be freed."

The Ninja looked to the Pink Ninja as she had gotten pale after hearing the news. "All that training and fighting made you stronger," Zane realized. "Perhaps, that stomachache you had earlier was your way of perceiving the oncoming sense of Onryō's return. If what Jorōgumo is saying is indeed true, King Onryō could be freed at the next time you fight an opponent stronger than you."

"Then I won't use my powers," she declared. "It's only my elemental powers, not physical strength."

"Goryō is well aware of that," the spider agreed, "which is why he attacked the way he did. We found Gozu and Mezu nearly beaten to death in the dungeon where he was imprisoned after the Oiwa incident. In that time he escaped, he stole the Oracle Orb so he could peek into the future,knowing what to do, and stole a nue from Harionago to steal your mother. He wants you to fight him and release Onryō. In turn, he will take down the both of you when you are at full strength to gain all the power, to gain the title of king."

"That's not how a monarchy works, that's a prison!" Cole blurted out, ripping the webbing off his mouth.

"We have to stop him from letting Onryō free like this," Lloyd declared. "Please, you have to know where he is."

"I do, but this will be no easy task in getting us there. Goryō's base is a mobile flying ship, _The Silent Plague._ I can warp all of us there, but I may make a slight miscalculation if it's moving currently. After that, we'd be left to deal with his army that specialize in curses, torture, and human consumption, not to mention he can already foresee us coming and may have set up traps. Along with-"

"Ok, hold on" Jay interrupted, "once we beat down Goryō, then we'll have to fight each other eventually. So basically you _want_ to destroy us but you wanna get rid of this third party so we can try to destroy the other side as the prophecy said it would happen and on your terms, which means you need our help to help you to try and kill us faster and in your way. And everyone's just cool with that?!"

"I'm warning you, you have truly no idea what we're facing. It's beyond reason and with your help, things can go back to the way they are meant to be. So I leave with the choice of accompanying me or not," she said. Jorōgumo reached her hand out to them as a dark portal appeared below her. "This is our only chance to get rid of Goryō before it's too late."

Without hesitation, Maria grabbed ahold. "There's no debate about it; he has my mom and from what I learned, I'm now tasked with protecting the southern part of Ninjago from harm. He must be stopped now."

Lloyd was the next one to step forward as he grabbed her free hand. "I'm coming, too. We promised each other to stay by the others side. You're true to your promises, so I'll stay true to mine."

"You know that means I'm coming along." Kai grabbed Lloyd's hand as the chain grew. "I promised to watch over you, big shot."

"And we've been together ever since were kids, I'm not about to let you go now," Nya added on.

"Of course I'll always be by my lady's side," the Blue Ninja said.

"I vow to stay with my brothers and sisters," the nindroid pledged.

Cole completed the chain as he spoke, "You guys need me. I'm the backbone of this team, I mean, someone needs to be the responsible one with Wu being gone."

"Let us know when you find him," Jay joked.

"If that's settled, then hold tight." The black portal spread its misty grasp under the Ninja's feet. They felt themselves sink into it, the ebony mist surrounding them until they all froze.

* * *

"We're here," Jorōgumo whispered as the Ninja were brought back to life. They took in their strange surroundings, but ended up being unimpressed. The deck looked no different than the _Bounty,_ but barren and much larger with wood of dark green and black shades. "I know, it's quite plain looking," she said, taking note of their looks, "the bottom deck always bored me, as well."

"So, what's on the other decks? One cannon?" Kai asked.

In reply, Jorōgumo pointed up and they followed where she gestured, now in astonishment. Peaking out from the ship's upper deck was a structure that resembled a temple, only smaller and tighter in form, with cannons sticking out of every level. A flag with Goryō's face plastered on flew proudly from the crow's nest of the temple. To top it off, a watchtower was built on top of the area where the bridge was expected to be.

"Ok, I'm slightly impressed," Cole admitted. "This is definitely made for attacking, but I don't see the silent aspect of it."

"That's something you'd rather not find out," said the spider demon as she led them up a flight of stairs, hiding tightly behind any cargo that was sprawled on the deck. "Now stay in the shadows and keep quiet. He knows we're here, but we can still remain hidden. First, we must free the captive, so there's no leverage over us. Next, find the orb and strike him when he is most vulnerable."

"Sounds good to me," Lloyd agreed. "But how do we find him when the time comes? The outside of the ship is pretty huge, I can only imagine the inside."

"Why imagine when you can see it?" a voice cut through as a chain was suddenly wrapped around Jorōgumo's waist. She was pulled back and received a swift kick to the head the second she was close enough to Goryō. While she was unconscious, he subdued her with the chains. "Oh, little Ninja, why don't you come out? I just can't want to see you after all this time."

With their position compromised, they had no choice but to step out, weapons drawn. "Goryō, let Jorōgumo and Elise go or else," Lloyd threatened.

"Or else what, boy?"

Suddenly, he snatched Maria by her wrist and held her forward for him to see. "Or else I'll remove Maria's power, and Onryō will never be freed. He might even cease to exist, which means you'll be stuck as a lowly Goryō."

"What?!" the others asked in shock.

"Play along," he whispered through gritted teeth.

"You're trying to fool me," the demon huffed, "you can't remove the powers of the Spirit Queen. It's impossible and unheard of!"

"I can manipulate energy, which includes draining it. In just one second, I can drain all the spirit energy from her in an instant if you don't let them go."

"He is telling the truth." Zane quickly backed him up, "If you fail to follow our demands, you lose your chance to become king. Isn't that what you want?"

Goryō thought for a moment and gave in. He threw the helpless spider onto the deck, landing at their feet. "I released her, as for the human…" His eyes flashed green for a split second before snapping his fingers. "Good lucking finding her alive."

The ground beneath them vanished as they fell. It was short but hurt them as they landed on top of each other in a pile. The light from the hole they fell in was blocked out as Goryō popped his head as he looked down on them, laughing a wicked laugh. "You think I'm going to give that human up easily? I need her as my queen when I become king!"

"That's my mom you're talking about, you creep!" The Pink Ninja weakly shook a fist at him in anger. "You try anything and it's over for you!"

"Really? But I thought you wouldn't use your powers so Onryō could stay captive? Then again, you're probably still debating that, so allow me to help you make up your mind!" He snapped his fingers once more with blue green flames lighting up the room they stood in.

Circling them were cages filled with demons and horrific looking creatures that had woken up and started snapping at them from their prisons. Their mouths watered as they all screeched and howled for a taste of their new food. "Listen, somewhere down here, I've imprisoned the woman. Survive my horde and you'll find her, but making it out of my holding room is but the first part."

"The first part of what?" Maria asked.

"The first part of my series of tests! The Second Strike: The Trials of Power! These beasts cannot be defeated by brute force alone; your spirit power is the only thing that can get you out of here. Now begin!"

The hole sealed up and the cage doors flung open. The creatures scrambled out of their cramped space and circled around the Ninja. Fear kept them frozen, fear and uncertainty. Whatever they chose to do would have consequences to follow, this needed to be thought out. But time had run as one of the demons attacked, it's mouth open to receive its meal.

In that moment, a flash of pink swept by them. It was made clear what happened when it began sinking its teeth into Maria's arm.

* * *

 **Yeah, I'm leaving you with that 'cause I can! :D**

 **Hope you enjoyed this, feel free to ask questions, give comments or constructive criticism, or whatever, but let's keep it positive and friendly.**

 **Next time on Ninjago: Legend Reborn…**

 **Second Strike Part 2- All Hail The King (FINALE!)**

 **Until then, God is good,all the time. All the time, God is good!**


	47. 46: Second Strike- All Hail The King

**Disclaimer: Guys, we should know at this point what I have ownership over. If not, too bad there's no time to explain at a time like this! It's the Finale and the ending of the first book, soon the beginning of the second book! Sure its late, but it's here and it'll be worth it! (; Also, there's major updates on my profile about characters, read at your own risk.**

 **Now, for one final time, let me say…**

 **LET'S**

 **KICK**

 **IT!**

" **There are three things all wise men fear: the sea in storm, a night with no moon, and the anger of a gentle man." Patrick Rothfuss,** _ **The Wise Man's Fear**_

* * *

 **Chapter 46: Second Strike Part 2- All Hail The King**

The beast relentlessly ripped through the thick material of Maria's gi, but managed to graze her as she let out a yelp. Pulling back from the fight, Zane quickly shot a stream of ice around them, covering them in an ice dome. The demons on the outside pounded, shaking their cover with every strike. "It won't hold for long, there's too many," he warned.

The Green Ninja turned and grabbed his sister's arm before she could react. Her sleeve had a large cut in it, making way for two parallel scratches to bleed freely. While pressing down on the wound to stop it from bleeding, he scolded her, "I can't believe you did that. That thing could've eaten you."

"I was trying to divert its attention away from you guys," she protested. "No one was doing anything, besides, Goryō wants me. He's testing me, I gotta show him I'm not weak."

"No, he's messing with you. You have to show him you're not alone."

"Kid, you're stuck with us," Cole added. "We didn't almost die multiple times just for you to try and ditch us."

"You're a Ninja," Nya said while washing Maria's wound clean. "When someone messes with one of us, they mess with all of us."

Sighing, she nodded her head. "Ok, I get it. No acting out or going alone."

"And under no circumstances are you to use your powers for any reason," Lloyd finished.

Jay let out a nervous laugh. "I'm not sure if you've heard the crazy demon, Lloyd, but her powers are the only thing that can get us out of here. If she doesn't use them… _we're doomed!"_

"What about your gems?" The four gem bearers exchanged uncertain looks while Maria groaned. "Come on, guys. I know it's been a while and we haven't had time for you to practice with them since they went inactive, but can't you try?"

"Well, my armor would be the best bet if I could get it working. But we're running short on time for me to try and channel it," Kai explained. "Maybe we could just blast through with my fire to scare those things out there."

"That could work," the young Ninja mused. "I saw a dozen hihi out there, one of which bit me so yes, they are carnivores. Then there was three or four kotengu, nasty little beasts if I do say so myself. And lastly…yeah, you guys are lost, aren't you?"

Their faces went blank when she went on explaining. They lowered their head and murmured. "Yeah."

"Backing up," she sighed, "let's start with the hihi. Giant carnivores that resemble baboons and named after the laughing sound they make, which makes their lip flaps pull back and showcase their fangs. Kotengu, despite their humanoid bird appearance, can't understand us, but they love to torture humans in the cruelest of ways just for fun, including eating them. Lastly, I didn't see the nue which is good."

"Well, isn't this nice? The nue isn't here, so that leaves us up for grabs by over a dozen other demons that can all eat us!" Jay shouted. "How are we getting out of here?"

"Charging through is our best choice," Zane replied. "We'd have a higher chance of survival, but we have to execute this exactly as I say to. Kai must melt the dome with his spinjitzu and continue using fire to get through the crowd, confusing them while we stay close behind. In case, Jay," he faced the Blue Ninja, "you must shoot bursts of lightning at beasts that come within five feet of our group to stun them. The rest of us must offer support by pushing them back and getting rid of obstacles in our path."

"Sounds good to me." Lloyd picked up the unconscious Jorōgumo and carried her in his arms. "I'll keep watch over her, so I can't offer much until she wakes up. Everything else is settled, we just gotta time this right at the right moment."

 **CRACK!**

The ice dome began cracking, the outer layer growing thin and weaker. "I'm pretty sure it's the right moment now," Kai said as he got into position. The rest of the group tucked close behind as he lit his fists on fire. "We're going in five…" The dome shattered in pieces, the hihi being the first to charge at them. _"ONE!"_

The Fire Ninja ripped through the horde, burning the wooden floor with the flames of his spinjitzu. The fire spread and drove the beasts back as the other Ninja quickly followed after him as he ran down a hall, Jay in the back to cover them. Screeches and roars of anger followed after them, along with the furious flapping of wings and rushing claws scratching against the rough floor.

One kotengu broke through the crowd, flying full speed as its crazed eyes fixated on the Ninja. It came close to tasting them as its blue tongue sprung out from its mouth when Jay shot a blot of lightening at it. The bird demon was stunned and trampled by the oncoming stampede, continuously pursuing them. "Guys, I'm pretty sure I see a new room ahead," Kai called to them. "I think it's safe to say we need to lose these guys now if we're gonna get any further."

"Leave that to me," Cole acknowledged. He stopped and let the others pass by him as he sent an earth punch on the floorboards, the strength sending off a quake that broke the wooden ground beneath the starving demons. They fell below deck with a cacophony of howls echoing from the hole just as Zane quickly blocked it off with a thick layer of ice. "Too easy, I barely got a scratch on me."

"Speak for yourself," Maria grumbled. "So where to next?"

Right there." Kai pointed towards a large steel door only a few steps from where they were. "We just go through there and we might have your mother back before you know it."

"What if it's a trap?" his sister asked. "Goryō's crazier than anyone we've met. It's his style to pull something like this."

Walking down to the door with no fear, he set his hand on the cold knob and twisted it. Looking back, Kai said to them, "Then we'll be ready." He flung the door open and they all quickly stepped back, weapons drawn. Cautiously, the Red Ninja lit his fist and moved it around in the dark room to spot any dangers.

He slowly crept in, signaling the others to carefully enter. Their steps creaked under the aging wood, despite their efforts to remind quiet and not alarm any enemies. For now, the room was bare and very dark due to its lack of windows. A cool wind blew, chilling them from cold rather than fear.

"Anyone else just wanna get this over with and have something pop out at them?" Jay whispered. "I can feel it, something's off about this place. There's nothing here, so why guard it with the heavy duty door?"

"Perhaps it is an illusion, a trap," Zane suggested. "Then again, that would mean Goryō would put something in here to distract us from what he's really hiding. In any case, we should proceed with caution." Assisting with lighting up the room with his eyes, Zane observed the floor and found pools of water scattered around them.

"Strange, I don't feel any water dripping down on us," Cole commented.

" _Ewwww!"_ They focused their attention on the source of the sound, Nya, as she was drenched with a glop of "water." She shook it off and shuddered in disgust. "Gross! It's so thick and warm! When was the last time he fixed his pipes?!"

"I didn't expect a ship this ancient to have working pipes," Lloyd pondered. He gently set down Jorōgumo and shined a beam of energy towards the ceiling as another puddle of the water like substance dropped down near his feet. Focusing on where the puddle came from, he shone his energy's light on the now giant face of the nue. "Run, it's a trap!" he shouted while scooping up the unconscious demon once more.

The seven of them stumbled towards the door, their freedom within their grasp gone as a giant tiger paw slammed the door shut. Shining their lights on it, they watched it creep slowly towards them, smacking its lips in pleasure. It had grown significantly in size as their height was now equivalent to one of its paws, a perfect size for a snack. Its fur gained volume and had red veins in its wicked eyes.

"What is he feeding this thing?" Jay asked, backing up as it approached. "We can't beat it like this."

"Yes, we can. We just need a little light!" Kai summoned a large ball of fire and threw it into the air, with fireballs raining down on the nue. The wooden walls caught fire and lit up the dark room in shades of red and orange. "Ok, that worked a little too well."

Startled by the fire, the nue ran back and forth from the walls in an attempt to put them out. It lashed its tongue out at the Ninja, trying to catch one as a snack. Fortunately, as they jumped out of the way, it latched onto a piece of burning wood and howled as it tried to put it out.

"This thing is out of control," Nya said as they watched the horrible scene play out. "I get that they're supposed to be dangerous and reckless, but this is just plain insanity. And how'd it get so big?"

"Goryō…" Jorōgumo's weak voice cracked as she woke up from her tired state. She stood with a wobble as she continued. "Goryō devised a separate plan when he was in the guard; a plan to capture essences of other beasts to strengthen our armies. I suspected he did just that with this nue, but he overfed it.

"It's body and mind can't take the sudden surge of power bestowed upon it. This creature has lost its senses and thought. It may just be torn apart by its own doing."

"Then we should stay back and let it work this out," Cole suggested. "If this thing lost its sanity, maybe it'll just go overboard and leave us alone."

 **CRASH!**

Confirming their suspicions, the nue had destroyed the wall of the room with a powerful body slam and exposed the open night sky. In a moment of confusion, it ran back and forth across, slowly making its way towards the newly made hole. The weight of the beast was unbearable for the crumbling wood, in turn, the nue lost its footing and fell almost completely through. Hanging by only paw, the ship became unbalanced under its weight and tipped over, having everything, including the Ninja, slide down the side.

They quickly lodged their weapons, webbing for Jorōgumo, into the lumber and held on tightly, lest they fell into the nue's mouth. With its meal in its sights, the nue lashed its tongue out wildly, trying to reach them by their dangling ankles. "Hey, Lloyd," Cole shouted to the leader, "this thing doesn't seem like it's going down on an empty stomach, I know I wouldn't. I was thinking, well, if we don't wanna end up as Ninja chips in this monster's stomach, Maria could-"

"No," he denied him. "She can't use her powers, it's what Goryō wants. The nue can't hold on forever and it can't reach us. It's all gonna be fine."

Just then, the nue managed to pull itself up for a split second. In that brief time window, its slimy, sleek tongue slithered around Kai, Jay, and Lloyd's ankles, pulling them down closer to its mouth. Something flashed in their eyes as they were pulled down and past their friends' gazes. Something came across the remaining the Ninja's minds too as the watched their friends get pulled down to the demon's dark, slimy mouth.

Cole and Zane reached out for them, as though they could still reach them as they were right there. Nya screamed in horror at the sight; Jorōgumo mimicked her but had tears flow from all three of her eyes. Maria reacted differently to the situation, completely different. As the ivory fangs were about to clamp down and pile the three Ninja into the nue's mouth, she reached out and instinctively shot a orb of spirit energy down its throat. The monster finally lost its grip and released the ship, falling with its meal in tow.

With the weight released from its side, the ship became upright again. The flames had died out, leaving the four remaining Ninja in shock. They stood in cool moonlight from the hole, slightly hopeful that their friends had made it out somehow. The youngest Ninja fell to her knees, eyes wide with disbelief. True, she had used her powers when she wasn't supposed to, but it was just a little. Even a little should've helped them…it should've saved them.

"Could someone pull us up, please?" A voice brought them back to reality, compelling them to run over to the hole and look over the side. Hanging by a burnt rope like substance that tangled them slightly, their friends looked back up at them. "Seriously, could you guys pull us up already?" Jay asked.

Quickly acting, they carefully pulled Kai, Jay and Lloyd up and onto the deck. "How?!" Nya blurted out. "How did you survive that?"

"And where'd you get this rope from?" Cole asked as he untangled them.

"Crazy story, the nue swallowed that orb Pinky shot down its throat before it tried to gobble us up. Then POOF! It turned black all over and blew up into ashes before we were eaten alive."

"That doesn't answer my question though." The Earth Ninja held the rope up to their faces and shook it. "Seriously, where'd you get this rope that just happened to save your lives?"

With a disgusted look on his face, Kai pushed his hand down. "That is not a rope. That is its tongue." Repulsed, Cole dropped it and furiously wiped his hands clean on his pant leg. The tongue, in turn, turned to ash as it fell to the ground. "We're lucky it stayed solid enough for us to hang on to the ship."

"And we're grateful for you did," Lloyd said as he turned to the Pink Ninja. "You saved us, even though I told you not to use your powers, you made the right choice."

"Lloyd…" she quivered. "I feel bad."

"Don't be, bud. I told you, you made the right choice between letting us get eaten or saving us at the risk of your powers. Be proud," he assured.

"No, I mean…" She clenched her stomach as her face went pale white. Shaking, the young Ninja staggered towards him. "It's just that…I don't feel so good." With no strength in her body, she fell into his arms.

Lloyd, in slight shock, carefully rested her on the ground as she clung to him. She shook furiously and began sobbing, her tear-filled eyes gleaming pink with the spirit symbol in them. The others gathered at the frightening sight of their friend.

"What's happening to her?" Nya asked Jorōgumo.

"He's coming…Onryō's coming," she replied. "The girl has unlocked her powers, she's reaching her full power once again. That only can mean-"

"I don't want him to come," Maria squeaked. "I'm sorry, I tried not use my powers. Big brother, please" she buried her face into his chest and pulled at his gi, "please, don't let him come out. _I'm sorry!"_

"Don't worry, maybe I can remove the energy from you." The Green Ninja carefully grabbed her hand to begin the process and immediately recoiled. "She shocked me!" he exclaimed. "But this didn't happen the last time I drained energy from her, why now?"

"It's too much for you to handle as a human," Jorōgumo explained. "The intensity of this much raw power is shaping her body so it can settle in this-this human structured form. If it goes well, she won't be harmed, if it doesn't…that outcome doesn't need to be described."

"You said _as a human_ the energy couldn't be drained from her since it would be too much to handle," Zane inquired. "Could a being that is a demon or spirit handle it?"

"Don't be a fool, this power…" She let out a soft gasp as her face. "The others are with Onryō."

"Why are you upset? That's great news, right?" Jay asked as he trembled anxiously. "Please, just give us some good news that things will get better! And what do you mean it needs to settle in?! Is she gonna blow up?!"

With a swift flick of her hand, Jorōgumo smacked him on the head and ended his panicking. "For one to hold a gem representing courage, you get scared quite easily. Back to the problem at hand, as I was saying, my comrades can solve this. They are with Onryō, who will shortly show signs of being released, prompting them to take action and prevent him from being freed. There's just one issue…Onryō is more violent when he acts up."

"Can they…handle it?" Nya asked.

"When the times grow dark and things are falling out of place, they know how to stand tall and be mature."

* * *

 **In the Dying Kingdom…**

"Do it," Harionago pressured the fox as he gave a disapproving look in return. Kitsune turned to give her a firm glare just before he reluctantly shape shifted into a mirror. The reflection was empty at first until the nonexistent shine came to, Harionago's twin staring back at her. "Perfect," she sighed, "now give me long flowing hair, rosy cheeks and lips, and full lashes with a gown and jewels to match."

"That's too much work! I'm already trying to hold form after the last few times you made me do this!" Kitsune barked, the mirror breaking apart and resembling a giant version of his mouth as he spoke. "I'm sick of this! My muscles are aching from this routine and I can't itch myself when I'm forced to play this game with you! Gashadokuro, tell her to stop!"

The giant red skeleton was resting against Onryō's prison bars, attempting to sleep had it not been for the two young demons constant squabbling. He let out a yawn that bounced off the cavern walls around them. Rubbing the sleep from his nonexistent eyes, he gave the fox a firm stare. "Just get on with it and leave me out of this game unless you want to become my pillow."

Groaning in defeat, Kitsune manipulated Harionago's reflection as she commanded. Her hair was a soft golden cloud gently pulled up halfway with pearls into a neat braid. Pink flooded back into her cheeks and lips, her eyes regained a youthful, warm spark as the ice melted away. An elegant yellow dress with frills and lace fitted her perfect figure, her neck sparkled as it was adorned with a string of blue jewels that seemed to float. Sighing, Harionago admired herself as though this version of her was here now, fully believing in this illusion before her.

"Aren't I the most beautiful thing you've seen?" she mused to herself.

"Yeah, you _aren't,"_ Kitsune sneered before laughing his head off at his joke. Fuming with anger, Harionago sent a swift punch at her reflection, shattering it to pieces. In turn, the fox transformed into his original self, except with a mouth full of broken teeth now a part of his appearance. "Wha wa tha fwor?!" he shouted as he held his muzzle in pain.

"I thought I told you two to behave with your silly games!" Gashadokuro shot up from his relaxed position, tired of his failed attempts to relax and turning his frustration onto the lower captains. "One moment, just one moment to sleep and rest my bones is all I ask. But no, who needs sleep when I can listen to you squabble! Great way to spend my life!"

"This isn't living!" Harionago cried out. "How many times must we go over that? We're just…not dying." She hugged herself tightly as she began to tremble. "We're stuck like this, as monsters and demons that terrify others without even trying."

"Since when do you care how others see us?" he replied. "We've barely gone out unless ordered by King Onryō. Also we're not exactly 'social' or 'outgoing' like people are. We have our reasons for staying in the Dying Kingdom for a majority of the time, remember?"

The young demon stood tall and stomped her foot on the ground like a child. With a shrill voice, she screamed, _"Well, I'm sick of staying here!"_ Harionagocontinued to stomp while shouting out her frustrations. _"I'm sick of being a demon! I'm sick of how I look! I'm sick of being Harionago!"_

 **BOOM!**

The cavern walls shook furiously and the ground beneath the frightened demons split apart into a chasm. They clung to the wall and each other for shelter as a dark shadow matter seeped from Onryō's cage. It gave off a dark purple smoke as it oozed into tendrils that crawled up the sides of the throne room like an insect. The trio inched away from the oncoming substance and towards the exit of the room. Once they reached the outside hallways, they released their breath and fell to their knees.

"I didn't do it!" Harionago quickly defended herself. "Something must be wrong with the king! Someone please agree with me!"

"No, you're right," Gashadokuro panted, "but that's the bad news. Jorōgumo hasn't returned with any news about Goryō's capture. I fear this is a sign…one we've all been expecting for a long time. Onryō's breaking free while Goryō is still on the loose."

"We have to stop it then!" Kitsune exclaimed. "He can't be freed like this! If he just had enough energy taken from him, he'd be weak enough to stay dormant and give Jorōgumo and the humans more time. But how?"

Harionago's face lit up as an idea crossed her mind. "That machine I stole, the one that we've been using to extract essences, I still have it! Perhaps it can withstand some of the king's energy. But where would I put the excess?"

"Figure that out later!" the demons shouted at her. Snapping out of her thoughts, she whistled a high note, manifesting a black portal to her side. She stretched her thorn hair in and searched around until she felt the strange machine's cold exterior, grasped it tight, and pulled it through to her the grip of her own hands.

"Guess it's up to me to try and help save the day, huh?" she sighed. "I'm not sure a simple device like this can withstand his power, it could cause backlash that might…harm me. If that happens, I want you two to know-"

"Don't get all melodramatic with us!" Gashadokuro interrupted her. "You'll be fine. Just get in there!" With a sweep of his giant hand, he lead her to her terrible fate. She stood completely still at the sight of her king before her.

His entire body was illuminated with glowing yellow veins, outlining his monstrous form. Onryō flung out his arms, mere inches away from crushing Harionago, and clawed at the cracked earth with his blood red claws. He breathed heavily, sending dust particles and pebbles floating away on his hot, tired breath. Faintly, his pearl white teeth glistened in the shadows as his mouth dripped with the dark matter that had engulfed the caverns almost completely. His eyes remained shut, but twitched as did his emerging body.

With a gulp and a small step, Harionago slowly made her way to him. She quietly crept, careful not to make a sound lest Onryō snapping awake. Her tense fingers cracked softly as she tried to relax them enough to move them over the machine's trigger. Reaching the very front of the bars that separated her and Onryō, she raised her arms steadily and aimed carefully at the center of his forehead. Overwhelmed with fear, she took a deep breath in to relax herself as she began to apply pressure to the trigger.

At the echoing click of the trigger, Onryō quickly snapped to life and grabbed her in his giant hand, high above the ground.

"What are you doing?" he hissed, his luminous, yellow eyes staring deep into her. "Answer me! Is this your idea of a tasteless joke?!"

"N-no…King Onryō," she squeaked out as most of her breath was forced out of her by his powerful grip. She felt around for the device in his giant hand, trying to complete her task as her death was imminent. "I'm only trying to help. I know it seems foolish, but really, I'm only trying to-"

"Trying to harm me! Is that it now?" He crushed her harder in his palm, getting a sudden yelp out of her. His stare on her went firm as he said, "First Goryō, now you turn on me, of all of my remaining captains! What have you to say in your defense?"

"My…My King, please…" With what little strength she had, Harionago reached for what felt like the smooth exterior of the device. She felt a piece of it move as she pulled it back with her fingers. "…don't hold this against me."

A bright light shone from the gaps of Onryō's clenched fingers, piercing through the darkened throne room. His fist began to shake as his veins lost their luminosity, causing him to drop the young demon as she kept a steady aim at his palm before moving the stream of light over to his forehead. The sharp point of his claws became dull and rounded as did his teeth. The matter he exuded moments before had come crawling back from every crack and crevice of the cave, forcibly making its way back into his body. The device's canister was on the verge of being overfilled just as Onryō was almost rendered weak once more.

In a blind rage, the Demon King grabbed ahold of his prison bars and shook them furiously in an attempt to break free. They barely moved with what power he had left in his body, having his frustration grow drastically. His entire giant body shook as he continued into his last moments. "I refuse to spend another moment in this cursed prison!" he bellowed with all his might before pounding on the ground, sending the Dying Kingdom in a monstrous quake.

" _Let me out! Let me out of this wretched cage! LET ME AT HER!_ _ **Let me get my hands on Seraphina!"**_

 **BOOM!**

With his last scream echoing throughout his stone kingdom, he fell back in defeat and in slumber. His body stopped glowing with power and curled up behind the bars to keep warm. The throne room was restored to its original cave design, clean of the dark matter that had tainted it. Onryō was once again a weak, tired shadow being that hid away in the darkness.

Harionago fell back as well in relief. "It's safe now," she called out to Kitsune and Gashadokuro. As their footsteps approached her, she detached the glass container from the device and examined the contents inside that filled it to the brim. "We should put this somewhere safe and far away where no one can even touch it. Even us."

"I know how to hide it," Kitsune said while snatching it with his paw. "If you want something hidden well, give it to an idiot. They can surprise you at times with a sudden moment of brilliance. Catch, Gashadokuro!" he smirked while tossing it to the giant skeleton.

"Very funny," he replied unamused. "You know if Jorōgumo were here, she'd glue this container to your face with her web and say, 'Stop fooling around then and impress me, you imbecile.'"

"Alright, I'll stop joking…wait a minute." Kitsune nearly turned paler than Harionago as a thought crossed his mind. " _What happened to Jorōgumo and the humans?!"_

* * *

Maria kept twitching and whimpering at the intensity of the pain occurring in her body. The other Ninja kept watch over her and whispered reassuring words to her that it would be alright. Lloyd, especially, comforted her; he cradled her gently in his arms to ease her worries and discomfort. All the while, Jorōgumo stared distantly at the hole in the wall and the endless sea of clouds and stardust under the pale moon.

"Treating her like a baby isn't going to help," she said over her shoulder. "No wonder it took this long for her to reach full power, you barely let her do things on her own."

"Is this really the time?" Nya asked, her head popping out from the group. "Our friend's in pain and you're criticizing her? You're one to talk, you're not doing anything to help."

"I'm keeping watch. My allies are trying to soothe King Onryō, I can feel his power struggling to break free. Until then, I'm watching for any signs of his return."

"Ok…" Cole said. "But how do you know if he's coming back?"

Jorōgumo faced the outside view once more. "The sky shall turn dark and begin echoing with the thunderclap of storms. The oceans will part for his coming and he will rise up in his primitive form, ready to claim his place as ruler of this world."

"I'm sorry, but did you just say 'primitive form?'" Jay asked, panic creeping into his voice. "That's sounds really bad, she didn't say that, right? Please tell me she didn't just say that!"

Before he was answered, Maria's cries of pain died down. The pink glow of the spirit symbol faded away as did her crying. Her breathing became steady and clear as she looked at her surroundings. "G-guys…I see a-a bright light."

"Oh no, she's dying!" Jay cried out. "Don't go to the light, follow the sound of my voice!"

"Not that light." She pushed him away and sat up, rubbing her eyes dry. "I saw a pink one flash for a moment. I guess it was just my powers acting up."

"So, how do you feel?" Kai asked. "You good now?"

"I think so."

"She's right," the spider demon added on as she walked towards them. "My King is at rest once again; I don't feel his aura emerging as it was before. We're safe now."

The Ninja breathed a sigh of relief as they stood up. "I presume we should continue our search for your mother." Zane suggested. "Perhaps there's an easier way to find her now that things have died down. I could use my falcon to scour the outside perimeter and find her."

" _Do that, and I'll shoot it down and strip it of its meat to feed my army,"_ Goryō's voice sneered from above, startling the Ninja. _"I really must applaud you for your efforts in keeping the King and girl in check."_

The Ninja looked around for the source of his voice while showing they were unafraid. "You better give up, Goryō," Lloyd shouted back. "We're going to find Elise and stop you from carrying out your crazy plan.

"Yeah, and Zane's bird is mechanical anyway," the Blue Ninja taunted. "There's no meat on it, stupid! So, ha!"

"Jay, don't make him angry," Cole scolded.

"He's just a voice, what's he gonna do?"

In response, a trail of blue green flames lit up the room and continued on in a trail leading back out into the hallway. _"I can make things easier and lead you to what you seek. I don't blame you if you have doubts, but I employ to follow the path I've set for you. Like you, I'm curious to see how things turn out. Farewell."_

It went silent as the group was left with the decision to either to take this chance or not. The sudden turn events was unprecedented, as Goryō said, how things would turn out was hard to determine. With no one saying anything about their situation, the Pink Ninja began walking out and following the flames.

The others quickly followed and caught up with her. "What do you think you're doing?" Lloyd asked. "This could be another trap and you're walking right into it."

"My mother's at stake, I think that's pretty self explanatory," she replied, her eyes locked on the path ahead. "If he pulls anything, I swear, I won't use my powers at all. I'll run away, I'm pretty good at that."

"She's not wrong," Jorōgumo said, while taking a protective hold of Maria's arm. "Her powers are dormant; they'll stay like that so long as nothing 'sparks' them."

"Uh, I'm sorry, 'sparks?'" Kai asked as he arched an eyebrow. "What, like spark a fire?"

"Of course not, it's completely different," she spat. "Everyone has one in them, you should know at least that. Something that ignites a certain emotion and/or action in someone."

"I literally have no idea what you're talking about, it just sounds ridiculous if I'm being honest." Murmurs of agreement rang out from the Ninja at Kai's statement.

She groaned and rolled her eyes. "Clearly, you humans aren't as observant and intelligent as you make yourselves out to be. No matter, I assure you that whatever sparks this girl's powers won't if Goryō does pull a trick. I'll see to it myself."

* * *

"How noble," Goryō said to himself. It was an amusing sight seeing Jorōgumo take the role of a leader and brave her way through. "At least she'll perish with some dignity."

Even though he knew of the future and what was to undeniably happen, he did have his doubts. The child was quick to use her powers after he tilted the ship to have a few of the humans fall into the nue's mouth, but she recovered quickly. It was almost admirable seeing her hold off that much power she had yet to utilize.

He set down the Oracle Orb and walked over to the steering wheel, turning it to the right and southwards towards the ocean. The King would undeniably be freed tonight, the Orb assured him that. Goryō was determined to see that glorious sight of King Onryō rising up and breaking free from his cage once more. It would all fall into place…yet a little push couldn't hurt.

The demon walked towards the back of the ship's bridge to his armoire. He parted the aged wooden doors, the glass bottles of miscellaneous essences and liquids clinking from the small tremor. Giving the nue the agility and flexibility of a water demon probably wasn't the smartest choice if they were using fire. Reaching out, he grabbed a small fluted bottle filled with a thick yellow liquid.

"Perfect," he purred. "A few drops of this and my next pet will be much stronger. Then again…why settle for just 'much stronger!'"

* * *

"Ok, try it one more time. I know I have it down, I swear," Jay pleaded.

"Fine," Cole groaned. He pulled a spare coin from his pocket and hid his hands behind his back. The others rolled their eyes as they knew how this scenario would play out…again. "Ok, which hand is it in?" he asked while holding out his clenched fists.

Jay stared hard and focused intensely, hoping his gem's powers would activate and help him. He finally settled on Cole's left hand and pointed confidently, "It's in that hand."

"Nope." The Earth Ninja opened up his fists and indeed, the coin was in his right. "You're wrong, just like the last 20 times."

"One more time!"

"Jay, please, you'll fall behind and get lost if you keep playing that game," Maria called from the head the group. They had yet to reach their destination, leaving Jay in boredom.

The Blue Ninja sputtered in disbelief. "Wha-you! This isn't a game! It's a highly complicated test to sharpen my skills and activate my gem's power so I can use it again!"

"You're trying to find a coin," Kai deadpanned.

"Are all humans like this when things get uneventful nowadays?" Jorōgumo asked. "If so, I feel sincerely sorry for your generation."

"Hey, I'm trying to make the most of our situation!" Jay ran ahead to catch up with the spider demon. "I mean, Kai would destroy the place if he tried to use his, Lloyd needs absolute concentration, I don't even know what Zane's does! I'm the only one who can try to activate it quickly and be useful!"

The Red Ninja spun on his heels and got in his face. "Excuse me? I saved our lives back there, not to mention mine's the most powerful when it comes to combat. Even if you can see the future, your reaction time is slow. You panic instead of attacking or defending."

"Well, I helped in keeping a majority of those demons away. Also, I don't need to throw a temper tantrum to activate my powers."

"Tantrum?!"

"Will you two shut it!" Lloyd's sudden outburst had the group frozen in place. Embarrassed by his behavior he looked away. "Look, sorry for yelling, but we're a team. That's what's going to help us get through this, so stop taking out your frustrations and fears on each other, ok?"

"Fine," Kai and Jay sincerely said before shaking hands.

"Honestly though," the Green Ninja thought aloud as they continued on, "I'm younger than the both of you, yet _I'm_ the one that acts mature most of the time." Not looking where he was going, he bumped into a still Jorōgumo. "Oh, sorry."

"What did you say?" she whispered.

"Pardon?"

She turned around and took ahold of his hand, her eyes wide and locked on him. They had him in a trance as she stared deeply into his soul. "What you just said to them…what was it?"

"Hey, guys!" Nya called to them, snapping them out of their moment. They had fallen behind, abandoned by the others just as they were about to head down a flight of steps. "We found where Elise is! You ok up there?"

"Fine, we're fine," the Green Ninja called back, releasing himself from the spider woman's grip. "We're coming." He turned to Jorōgumo and asked, "You alright?"

"Yes…I don't know what came over me. I apologize," she said, not meeting his eyes. "Let's just free the human." She walked down with Lloyd on her heels. They met up with the others as they stopped before a wooden door, blue green flames burning around the frame. "I'll get the human, the rest of you stay here."

"Hey, she's my mom," Maria protested. "I should go get her."

"But you need to get away if there's a trap." She gripped the brass doorknob, twisted it and prepared to push it open. "I swear to you, no matter what may come after me, I'll get your mother to safety as soon as possible and come back for you."

 _ **CREAAAKKK!**_

The flames disappeared as she opened the door gently, the group carefully stepping inside as to not trigger any possible traps. The room was clearly lit, with a silver cage hanging from the ceiling. Inside, Elise had been laying down and shot up at the sound of creaking wood. "Maria!"

"Mom!" Maria yelled back, though she was quickly shushed. "Mom, listen to me," she said in quieter tone. "Jorōgumo will get you out of there, I have to stay here for safety reasons. She'll teleport you back to the temple, then it's up to you to just go home and be careful, ok?" Her mother nodded in reply.

"Stand back," the spider demon ordered before summoning her four spider limbs from her back. She crept low before sending herself flying with a powerful leap towards the ceiling. She stuck her legs into the hardwood and crawled over to the chain of the cage, her body dangling as she prepared to grab ahold of it. When Jorōgumo reached the cage, she latched on with her own hands and slid down, gently landing on the top of the cage.

With her fang, she bit and ripped a hole through the top. She reached in and pulled Elise out from the hole as a dark mist emerged from underneath her. "I might be a minute or so before I come back since the ship is in motion," Jorōgumo called to them. "Just stay there and you'll be safe." Just like that, she and Elise sunk into the shadows and had disappeared.

"Well…this is boring," Cole commented, getting murmurs of agreement from the Ninja. "Are we really supposed to stay here and wait for her to get back?"

"We could talk to pass the time," Jay suggested. "I had the craziest dream last night, or nightmare now that I think about it, and I gotta get it off my chest. We were all there, then there was this giant clock and light that changed colors and we fell down-"

Lloyd froze in place after hearing just that much; it was similar to the nightmare he had, but he never told anyone the details yet. "Hold on, Jay. Was there also a tall stone pillar with a lot of steps that we climbed up?"

"Yeah, I was getting there to explaining that. How'd you know?"

"I…I think I had the same nightmare," Nya spoke up. "I don't remember much, but now that I think back, I had a rough time sleeping last night. There was a clock-no, that glass clock from the museum- that ticked seven times before-"

"-everything went dark and we fell on half of that stone pillar after it split apart," Kai finished. By now everyone's faces had gone pale and began to sweat at the unusual coincidence of having a similar nightmare shared by four people.

"While we are confessing," Zane said, "I believe I shared this nightmare, as well. I recall us having all seven gems gathered. Afterwards, I heard a voice, one I've never heard before that somehow sounded strangely familiar, reciting a poem. A prophecy, dare I say."

"But we lost Maria on the other half of the pillar." Cole gulped nervously before continuing on. "We couldn't move and neither could she. We were both stuck and then we fell. We fell and watched her-"

"-break apart into a million shards that rained down on us," Lloyd finished. Everyone stared at the Pink Ninja as her face had gone blank. "Well, you had the dream, too, right?"

She fiddled with her hands nervously before saying, "Actually, no. I dreamed I went to school naked." Maria received looks of confusion, to which she quickly defended herself, "Hey, dreams like that happen! Moving on, how come you guys had a possible prophetic dream and I didn't when I was clearly suffering in it?"

"Let's figure that out later," the Green Ninja replied. "I don't feel comfortable talking about stuff like this when Jorōgumo is helping us and when we're in a demon's base. This place really rubs me the wrong way just standing here."

"Speaking of which, anyone else think this was _too_ easy?" Nya asked. "I mean, Goryō led us here and decided to just hand over Elise after saying he would have her as a queen when he became king? Something's off."

"Maybe he's decided she's not his type after all," Jay said. "I don't blame him. She's more reserved, kind, and calm, he wants to rule the world and kill us by any means necessary. Maybe he-" the Blue Ninja stopped as a drop of water fell onto his face, trickling down his cheek. He wiped it off only for another to take its place, then another and another…

"Guys, let's go back," Lloyd calmly said while pushing Maria towards the stairway. "Let's go back to the deck where's it far away from here."

The Pink Ninja resisted him and protested, "But Jorōgumo said to stay here. We can't just leave and have her wonder where we went. Maybe it's nothing."

 _ **SWOOSH!**_

Water suddenly came rushing in from the ceiling, rapidly filling the room up. Realizing the threat, the Ninja quickly ran up the stairs and back into the hallway as it flooded the room. They scrambled into the upper level, nearly falling on the other just as the water level had risen completely to the first step. It stopped and sloshed gently with the rocking of the flying ship, spreading its sea salty smell into the air.

"Well that was anticlimactic," Kai said, breaking the silence. "Was he really going to drown us out?"

"Not us, Jorōgumo," Zane realized. "She may have a hard time accurately teleporting, but if she did by the time she came back to us, she could drown. Perhaps he's trying to separate us."

"I'm not swimming down there, what if this isn't even water?" Jay asked. "Or maybe there's something _in_ the water that's waiting for us to swim down and BAM! We're fish food."

"That's a possibility," Maria agreed. "There's a number of aquatic demons he could have under his control, but only a few would be able to fit in the size of the room. So that would eliminate whales, a few octopus and squid based demons, which would leave us with-"

Out of nowhere, Maria was dragged under water by a long barb in the blink of an eye, leaving a trail of air bubbles behind. The Ninja were in shock until Lloyd broke from the group and dove under into the dark, murky waters. Summoning an energy orb, he managed to light up his view at an arms length distance as he continued his search for his sister. The water was cold and made him tense up if he stopped swimming for a split second, even so he didn't until he saw a trace of her.

Everything was eerily calm as though there was nothing in the room but him. His lungs began to feel as though they would burst and shrivel up if he didn't breathe soon. With no choice but to swim up for air he began his ascension only to somehow descend instead. Confused and desperate, Lloyd furiously swam harder, only stopping after he felt a sharp pain prick his ankle. Focusing an energy orb on the direction of the pain, Lloyd found himself face to face with a giant shark.

It's tough skin, lined with thorn barbs, blended perfectly with the dark blue waters it swam in. The shark's black dot eyes stared intensely as it calmly latched it's pectoral fin into his pants leg and tried shoveling him into its mouth. Lloyd quickly pulled out his sword and slashed it in its eye, allowing the beast to release him.

He swam back and noticed another figure wriggling around, one that stuck out from the beast's camouflaged colors. Quickly swimming over he recognized it to Maria, her armor lodged on the barbed dorsal fin of the shark. She noticed him and waved him over to help, as he did, he saw her face sporting shades of blue in her cheeks and spreading. With what little breathe he had left, he sawed at it with his sword with all his might to free her from the barb's tight hold, his body ready to give out from the lack of oxygen.

The shark had began to take notice of the two and twisted its head back towards them, it's surprisingly long tongue gently trying to reel them in. They swatted it away as they kept pulling away from it until Maria had slowly gone limp. With no choice left, he sheathed his weapon and blasted a beam of energy at the sharp quill, only making it fall off from the fin halfway. Using his last breath, he held onto her tightly and gnawed away at the weakened spine, releasing them from the beast's grip. The two floated aimlessly away as his body felt heavy and cold inside. His heavy eyelids fell down, yet he refused to let go of Maria as he slipped into darkness.

"…Lloyd. …Lloyd. _**NOT LIKE THIS, MAN! NOT LIKE THIS!"**_

The Green Ninja woke up, his body being shaken furiously as everything had gone upside down. His throat suddenly felt rough and warm as he coughed up a large amount of water. He panted as he regained full consciousness, only to be dropped on his head. Lloyd sat up and rubbed it in pain as he took notice of his surroundings. Nya stood at the center holding her arms in an upward position as they floated in what looked to be a huge bubble. Kai kept his fist lit with a small flame, providing them with light. Jay and Zane stood by, looks of relief on their faces while Cole had an unconscious, upside down Maria by her ankles and shook her.

"What are you doing?!" he demanded. "Put her down now!"

"I'm getting the water out of her," the Earth Ninja explained, ignoring his request. "None of us were willing to do CPR, this was the only other way. It worked for you, it's gonna work for her."

Right on cue, Maria began gagging up water as she was set gently down on the floor of the bubble. She held her throat as she looked up and locked eyes with Lloyd. "L-Lloyd? What happened? Where are we?"

Overwhelmed, he knelt down and hugged her tightly. "That thing dragged you under and we both drowned, but we're ok now. You're ok now…and I honestly have no idea how we're down here in this bubble. Or why it's so muggy," he groaned as he pulled back felt his sweaty hair stuck to his face.

"We can explain," the nindroid said. "After you jumped in after Maria, we knew we had to plan out how we would reach you without getting trapped down here. Nya had the idea of forming this air bubble to keep us from drowning, while Kai provided us with light since it was too dark, even with my own lights."

"But we ran into some problems," Jay nervously chuckled. "We saved you guys and I reached out to you by calling your name, but we got cornered by that shark thing before you guys woke up. Now it's blocking the exit when it's not stalking us and Kai's fire is making this place a sauna, but hey, it's doing wonders for the pores!"

"You mean we're going to suffocate in here?"

"If I could try gathering air bubbles from the surface and bring them to our bubble," Nya suggested. "It would buy us time to figure out a way to escape that shark."

"It's called an isonade," Maria explained as she stood up. "Unlike real sharks, they're eerily calm, even when they catch their prey with their barbed fins. They live to sink ships and are one of the stealthiest creatures in existence. It could be anywhere now and gently swim by us and pop our bubble without us realizing it until it's too late."

"Not if we could see where it's next attack will be," Jay said. "I could predict its movements and we could counter them and get out of here."

Kai scoffed, "Yeah, if we could get these stupid gems to work, we'd all be ok. But have we had the time to focus on reconnecting with them? A bit, but it hasn't worked."

"Will you stop being so negative?" the Pink Ninja snapped at him. "Look at us now, we've faced worst than this and here we are now." She paused for a moment before exhaling a nervous breath. "I'm scared…I've been this way ever since we started this, and I relied on you guys to tell me what to do. But that's ok.

"I know you guys will stand by me, because maybe there is something greater that's keeping us together. Or maybe it's just that, in the end, we're keeping ourselves together and making each other stronger."

"Oh, Maria," Kai sighed, "that's such a sweet sentiment…that won't help us out of this situation!"

"Well, Kai, sorry for me being one of the few not ready to give up," she shot back. "At this point we should just try anything to get us out of here."

"I agree with Pinky," Jay spoke up as he slung an arm around her shoulder. "I think we can do this, we just need to focus."

She smiled before touching his hand and saying, "Thank you, Jay." The moment was cut short as he pulled his hand back and held his right wrist in pain. "What happened? Are you ok?"

"My wrist feels really hot!" The gem on the Blue Ninja's wrist began to glow dimly for the first time in a while. "Guys, I think I know what this is. Also you should get back!"

"Get back where?" Cole asked. "We're in a bubble!"

"No, no, no, you're not being overcome," Lloyd calmly told him. He pointed at the blue gem's dying glow and said, "See that? It's going away, it's not like when I was overcome. Or maybe it's just different for you."

Jay suddenly froze and snapped his head to the side. "Nya, move us to the left."

"What? Why?" she asked.

"Now, Nya! Move us to the left!" he shouted desperately. The Water Ninja complied and moved their bubble far left just as the isonade came swimming by, locking eyes with the Ninja as it passed. As it swam off into the distance, sparks of electricity ran around its body before disappearing. "Oh, that was close," he exhaled.

"I didn't even pick that up on my sensors," Zane exclaimed in awe. "You're powers…are they back?"

"They can't be. Sure, I felt something was coming our way, but my powers couldn't have just come back. Not out of the blue like that."

"But Maria touched your gem, could that have something to do with their sudden reappearance?"

Kai grabbed Maria by her shoulder and held his gem in her face. "Touch my gem."

"No, I'm not going to touch your gem!" she spat while pushing him away. "I'm not touching anyone's gem. We've got bigger problems; that isonade was generating electricity, they can't do that naturally."

"Goryō must've done something to it," Lloyd thought, "and it's acting calm like you said they typically do, so it must be more stable compared to the nue. Nya," he turned to her, "can you get us to the surface before our air runs out?"

"Of course," she nodded, "I can tell where you're headed with this. If Jay and I work together, we can get by it without a fight. But we gotta hurry," Nya said as she wiped her dripping forehead, "we're almost out of time."

"Not for long," Jay assured, focusing his energy on his gem. "Start moving forward." Nya complied and followed his directions as soon as he gave them. "Ok, move a little to the left and then right. Then keep going forward."

Slowly, the Ninja slumped over, panting as they struggled to breathe in the dense, humid air. Even Zane's systems began to overheat from the rising temperature. "We're at 113º F and rising…w-w-we need fresh air."

"Nya, we should be reaching the surface," Jay said over his shoulder to her. "I know this is going to sound crazy, but I need you to pop the bubble. We'll swim the rest of the way there, trust me."

"Jay, that's the stupidest idea you've ever had," Cole said. "What if that thing comes swimming by and you can't tell us to watch out?"

"We'll hold hands and swim together. Lloyd, back me up here!"

All eyes turned to the young leader as he struggled to stand upright. He began joining hands with Kai and Maria and looked back at the others. "What're you waiting for? Hold hands, we're getting out of this place!"

Without a word,they linked hands with the exception of Nya using her free hand to hold the bubble. They took in one last breath before the Water Ninja lowered her hand and popped their cover, sinking momentarily in the cold, yet refreshing waters. Jay took the lead in guiding the Ninja as they swam in sync, a light shimmering on the glassy surface as they came closer. As they reached the top, they surfaced from the aquatic trap and took a long, well deserved breath in. Nearly bumping their heads on the ceiling, they scanned the area until they saw that same light peeking out from the submerged stairway hall.

"There's our way out," Lloyd pointed out. "Just a quick swim over and a dive, and we're home free."

"I can do you one better," Nya smiled. With the wave of her hand, a current pushed them towards the exit at speeds faster than they could've swam themselves. Just before they reached the stairs, she stopped them and asked, "Maybe we should check if the isonade is nearby?"

"It's not, I know," Jay answered. "Just go." He was the first to dive under before they each submerged once again, one by one while still holding onto each other.

They swam up the slippery steps, eventually walking up as it opened up into the hallway. Finally free, they shook themselves dry and relaxed. "That was torture," Cole said as he twisted the water out of his hood. "I just want the day to be over and go home."

"You're telling me," Maria agreed, "this takes the cake of being one my wackiest birthdays ever."

A voice hissed down her neck. "I wished you would've told me that earlier, _Princess."_

Without having time to react, the Ninja watched in horror as Goryō grabbed her by the throat. Only Lloyd was quick to snap out of his fear filled state and charge at the demon. "Get away from her!"

Though she was within reach, she was whisked away, leaving the Green Ninja to fall and scrape himself on the hardwood floor. Anger boiled in him as he clenched only his fists, the rest of his body laying deathly still. His teammates didn't dare to even inch towards him in fear of what he was to do next. He felt hot tears welling up in his eyes and run down his face, mixing in with the blood dripping from his forehead. In an instant, he sat up and pounded his fists on the ground, screaming at the top of his lungs with his sore throat inflaming with frustration.

" _MARIA!"_

* * *

The Pink Ninja was thrusted onto the soft ground, confused as to what had happened. She sat up and observed her oddly refined surroundings. Plush, silken carpets lined the floors, sparkling from the golden light brought by a crystal chandelier hanging from the ceiling. Red velvet cur tens covered every inch of the walls, making it impossible for any outside light to peek through. An old, dusty armoire with golden designs was at the back of the room, nearly covered by a regal throne that sat in the center of the room. Together, the design and decorations had given off a feeling of being in an upper class house or throne room of a castle.

"You should've told me today was your birthday," a familiar voice crooned. Maria whipped around to see her captor, Goryō, leaning against a steering wheel to the ship He smiled as he approached her. "I would've shown you a better time, after all, you're the birthday girl."

She glared instantly at him. "What's your deal, you creep? You torture me and my friends, kidnap my mother and just let her go, now this! You're…you're a nut!"

Feigning he was hurt by her words, he held a hand over his heart and gasped. "Why, I never! Calling me an insane and disorganized person, or as you said in your own words…'nut.' I plan things out carefully with purpose; for example, your mother's kidnapping was to bait you here. That one is fairly obvious.

"Then there's the 'torturing' of you and your friends that you accuse me of. I only meant to push you to be greater than you are, your friends got in the way and made a mess of things. You know fully well you could've defeated that nue and isonade with your bare hands, but they messed it all up and-"

"Just stop," Maria interrupted. "You're just trying to get me to free Onryō and you know it. You're playing with me and trying to mess with my head, that's what you do. Well, tough, because I know you know he's on the verge of being released and that never going to happen. I will not use my elemental powers, no matter what you do, so suck it!"

Goryō grinned before turning his back to her. "You're quite spirited when you want to be. I admire that. Truly, a fine quality in a young lady." He snapped his fingers, putting out the chandelier's light and opening the curtains before him. The demon stared out to the night and sighed. "Such a beautiful sight I would've loved to share with your mother…but the problem is she loves someone else. What was the name…Christopher?"

A gasp escaped from Maria before she could stop it. Hearing it, Goryō chuckled, "Of course, how could I forget? He's your father; he must be since she kept declaring her love for him and mentioned he _was_ her husband. By the way, have I ever told you what happens when me and my teammates are in rest while Onryō is inactive?"

"Just shut up already," she warned him. "I don't want to hear anything you have to say." Though she was getting annoyed, a chill crept over her as she could feel this was going to end badly.

"We are stuck in the in between since we've never been completely defeated by Seraphina, you should know that if you were able to remember anything about your past. We are neither dead or alive, we are merely frozen, sometimes we have the pleasure of watching other souls die and pass through the Dying Kingdom, no matter their final destination. Truth be told, we see this when we're active through certain methods, but it's interesting when we're inactive."

Maria shot up from the ground and shouted at him. "Goryō, shut up right now! I don't want to hear anthing you have to say!"

"Oh, but you'll like this next part," he said while turning to face her. "You see, we can hear their passing thoughts and get a sense of how they died, what they regret, what they'll miss. It gets boring, but there was a soul that stuck out to me. A soul who believed he was dying a hero's death, yet he was quite sad that he would never see his wife or unborn child or that they would suffer without him…he was pathetic."

With every once of being, the young Ninja held back her powers, ready to strike him. Yet her tears began to overflow from her eyes. She muttered under her breath, "Shut up."

Goryō continued on, ignoring her physical pain he was causing her."I couldn't believe this man. Believing he died honorably when how he really died was pathetic."

"Shut up…"

"I mean, he went out when he was sick and fought, took a bullet to the chest for his dearest and oldest friend…"

"Shut up, Goryō…" Her fists clenched up tightly as she reached behind her.

"…then he holds on to what little life he has left, promising himself that he has to try for his future. But in the end, he dies and assures himself he died a hero when he really died as what I saw to be a pathetic, whimpering, crying shell of a man!"

" _ **Shut up, you godforsaken demon!"**_

Maria plunged her neko-te into his horn and threw him across the room. He crashed into his throne and reduce it splinters with the impact of his body being thrown full force. The Pink Ninja looked down at her hand and noticed his left horn had been torn off from her attack, lodged on the claws of her weapon. She looked back up as she heard him scrambling to get up from the wreckage.

He held his head in pain, his eyes glowing with fury. "That wasn't very nice."

* * *

"Lloyd, slow down," Kai called after him. He and the other Ninja struggled to keep up with him as he darted down from hallway to hallway, trying to find a way to the upper level. "Running around like a maniac isn't going to help us find her any sooner."

"That mad man has her, who knows what he's doing to her," he shouted back.

"But running around instead of putting our heads together won't solve anything."

Finally, the Green Ninja stopped and let his teammates catch up to him. He relaxed down a bit before addressing them. "Ok, I'm calm. Now how are we going to find her in time before Goryō does anything to her?"

"Goryō has the girl?" an annoyed voice cried out from around the corner. Jorōgumo shuffled to them, soaked to the bone and shivering, as she glared at them. "I teleport back to where I told you to stay and find myself being dragged underwater by a smelly fish that shocks me. Now I hear that Goryō has her captive!"

The Ninja backed up as they felt her fuming with anger. "So you escaped the isonade?" Kai asked. "How?"

"I don't want to talk about that. AT ALL." The spider turned her attention towards Lloyd. "You mentioned the girl was taken by Goryō. How did it happen?"

"He popped out of nowhere and disappeared into thin air with her," he explained. "I tried to stop him but he was too fast. We don't know where she is."

She groaned frustratedly before summoning a dark, misty portal on the ground. "Must I do everything for you? This will lead one of you near the ship's bridge, where he most likely took her."

"Why can it only take one of us?" Cole asked.

Jorōgumo focused all three of her eyes on him, as though she would strike him down right then and there. "Because I used most of my power to swim away from a shark, I'm freezing and exhausted, and I'm tired of you humans disobeying my orders! This is as good as its going to get!"

"…ok."

Lloyd stepped forward towards the portal. "I'll go," he said. "She's my responsibility and my sister. If anyone is going to save her, it has to be me."

Jorōgumo grabbed his hand and lead him into the portal. Before releasing him, she gave him a saddened look."Good luck then," she solemnly said, "and please, be careful." Finally, she let go and let him fall in, the portal swallowing him up before vanishing itself.

"What about us?" Nya asked. "How do we get up to the bridge?"

"The hallway to it is actually a few levels above us," the spider replied. "Goryō won't sense you coming if he's preoccupied with the girl and your leader; just blast your way through with brute force and you'll reach it. I'll go another route to try and surprise him. If all goes well, the reincarnate won't use her powers and hold on until we reach her."

She turned away and began running back near where she came from. As she prepared to turn at the corner, she gave them a final wave goodbye and left. The remaining Ninja prepared to take off when Zane interrupted. "Does anyone else wonder what she meant earlier by saying 'sparks?'"

"Zane, buddy," Jay sighed, "we all do. But now's not the time to discuss it, lives are at stake!"

"But listen for a moment," he begged, having the others groan impatiently. "She said that we all have one; something that compels us to do something or activate powers in Maria's case. I think Maria might have found hers but none of us realize it yet."

The others silently agreed that it was a valid point and thought about the possibilities. Kai was the first to speak up about the subject. "That would mean she would get stronger when her spark happened. The only time I can remember is when she was possessed and we all talked her out of falling under Oiwa's control."

"But before that she learned spinjitzu when the demons attacked the Hybrid Village," Nya added on. "It must've happened then, too."

"Oh, there was also the nue that happened not long ago." Cole thought. "She used her powers to protect her mom and you guys when it tried to eat you."

Zane froze in place as a thought came across his mind. "What if family is what compels her to use her powers, regardless of the consequences?"

The Ninja went pale at the realization. In all the scenarios they mentioned, they were a key part in them. She did spinjitzu perfectly to ward off the attack back at the village, despite being told to stay away in hiding. Maria blew the tail off the nue with power she had never used when her mother was being attacked. Then did it again but destroyed the whole beast after it had tried to eat them as they fell. They were the spark that ignited Maria's powers.

"Wait a minute," Jay shouted, "it can't be all of us. It still doesn't make sense."

"Jay, there's no other explanation," Kai told him. "We've been the reason she uses her powers and acts out."

"But what if there's _one_ person that's more important to her any of us, one person that she will always fight for?"

"…It's Lloyd!"

* * *

"That wasn't very nice," Goryō growled, his fist igniting with blue green flames. "You lack the grace of your former self!" He chucked a ball of fire at Maria, spiraling rapidly at her face. She quickly rolled out of the way of the attack and stayed on the defensive side.

She rebuked him from her positions across the room. "Say all you want about me, what you said about my father was the last straw!" In a mocking manner, she held his broken horn up and examined it. "I'm not even trying and I broke off your horn after I chucked you across the room. All without using my powers."

Goryō lowered his head and charged at her full force, ready to tackle her down. At the last second, she front flipped over him and landed perfectly, watching him run himself into the wall. As he struggled to free himself, Maria quickly turned to the exit. Before she could even take a few steps, a thorny vine bursted from the ground and wrapped her up in its tight grasp. She could barely breathe but didn't waste any time in trying to break free.

"That won't work," Goryō said, freed from his earlier failed attacked. "At least not by brute strength alone. If you used your powers, then you would have a fighting chance."

"Dream on, wannabe king!" the Pink Ninja shouted.

By merely raising and lowering his hand, the vine held her high above the ground before slamming her down. She had no time to recuperate as a hunk of dark ice appeared above her and fell, shattering into pieces as it crashed onto her back. Pain erupted through her body as she let out a scream, despite that, Maria forced herself up to face her foe. "It doesn't hurt, I'm only pitying you!"

Goryō narrowed his eyes on her as he summoned the vine again, this time around her injured arm. He twisted it until she fell back to her knees and tried to claw it off. "Does it hurt yet?" he hissed.

She bravely shook her head no, prompting him to walk over to her. He stared her down before grabbing her by her hair and pinned her against the wall. She bit his hand and kicked at him wildly, but it didn't phase him in the slightest. With a snap of his fingers, a silver sword appeared in his hand, pointed at her quivering throat. "This is your last chance. You can get out of this if you just use your powers."

"You can forget it," Maria whispered, "I know you won't actually kill me. Even if you did intended to, I'd rather that then let Onryō out into the world again by falling for one of your cheap tricks!"

A glint passed through his eyes as he raised his sword up high. "So be it."

Maria closed her eyes as she felt the air rush from his weapon, waiting for the blow to be dealt. This was how it was going to end and she had accepted it. Whatever needed to be done to keep Onryō locked away was what mattered; that was her purpose and she was ready to fulfill it. Tears came running to her eyes yet she didn't feel ashamed to show this weakness before her enemy in her last moments.

'I'm sorry, mama,' she thought, 'but this is the only way you'll be safe. I'm sorry, dad, but I have to think about my home and friends. I'm sorry, Lloyd…for everything.'

The cold blade plunged at her neck…and tilted her head up. Confused as to why she still felt life in her, she opened her eyes to find her staring at the ceiling. Frantically looking around, Maria managed to look down and see Goryō in shock as he stared at her neck. "What're you looking at, you weirdo? What are you-?"

He raised a finger to her chin, his sharp nail poking her as he held it there. "This scar…where did…? No, it can't be!" Goryō cracked a crazed smile as he threw his head back and laughed maniacally. "Of all the times-! _Now_ of all times-!"

"What're you talking about?"

"Stop playing innocent!" He regained his serious demeanor and grabbed her by the throat, nearly choking her to death. "It's hopeless to hide now," the demon said as he leaned in. He whispered in her ear, "Also, between the two of us…"his grip tightened as she felt limp, "…you should've stayed dead that day."

"Let her go!" A beam of energy shot into Goryō's side, separating the two as they tumbled on the ground. Maria wheezed and gagged as she tried to regain her breathe. A pair of arms wrapped around her and helped her up...it was Lloyd. "Are you ok? What did he do to you?"

 **CRACK!**

The floorboards split apart, light shining through before Jay's head popped up from the gap. His face fell as he examined the situation. "Hey, guys," he called down the hole, "good news and bad news! Good news: we found Lloyd and Maria. Bad news: we did make a wrong turn."

"Jay? What're you doing?" the Pink Ninja asked.

The Blue Ninja extended an arm to them. "No time to explain, we gotta get you two out of here now!"

"No one leaves!" Goryō quickly recovered and pounded his fist on the ground. At that moment, a large dark crystal emerged from where Jay was. It rose and broke the floorboards, with the other Ninja trapped helplessly in its grasp. They struggled to break free but had no success. "We're all going to witness the reappearance of King Onryō!"

"Lloyd, that's your cue to leave!" Kai shouted. "Just go!"

"I said no one leaves!" A vine wrapped around Lloyd and pulled him back to Goryō's side, his sword now pointed at his head. "He's coming…Onryō is near!"

"Goryō, leave him alone," Maria pleaded. "Lloyd's got nothing to do with this and you know it! It's me you want!"

A crazed look grew in his eye as he pressed the blade against the Green Ninja's skull. "I think not; it's all becoming clear to me, how you work, how your powers work. It's all coming to fruition, we're all waiting for you now to play your part."

"Kid, don't listen to him," Cole ordered her. "He's trying to trick you to use your powers!"

She couldn't hear anything her friends had to say, she was too focused on Lloyd's safety and the pressure of the situation. "Please, Goryō," she wept, "please let him go."

Goryō merely chuckled at her pleas. "You think that's going to work, asking nicely?" He moved the sword down to Lloyd's throat and begun to raise it up to strike. "Say goodbye!"

Everything slowed down for Maria in that moment as she watched in horror the events before her unfold. The intimidating glint of the blade gaining on her brother made a lump in throat appear. Her hands shook as Goryō had a smile of pure enjoyment grow as the sword was a few mere inches from its target. But what was the worst was Lloyd's eyes, full of so many emotions that overwhelmed her. He was scared at what would happen but he also had understanding; he understood that it would be best for her to stay back…he accepted his fate as she did not long ago.

He was ready to die.

'Why?' she wondered. 'Why are you accepting this? I'm the one with the curse of being connected to Onryō. Why are you like the others, ready to give it all up for _my_ sake? For once, just listen to what I want…'

" _ **Lloyd!**_ " she bawled in a raspy voice as she ran towards him, " _ **I want to save you! I want to be by your side forever! You promised me!"**_

In the midst of her sorrow, she latched onto Goryō's arm and pulled it away. Immediately, he pulled it away from her grasp and held it up for all to see…smoke emerging from a newly formed wound. The vine withered up and died as she ripped it away from Lloyd. The second he was freed, she latched onto him and hugged him, ignoring the excruciating pain that stirred within her. Maria sobbed like never before as Lloyd tried to calm her down.

"Hey, Maria," he calmly said to her, "thank you."

She pulled back and faced him, wiping away as much tears as she could from her eyes as they glowed pink with the spirit symbol. "You were going to be killed, how could you give in like that? Did you forget we promised to stay together? If anyone was to die it should be me! I'm the one that got you into this mess!"

He shushed her before answering, "It's all going to be ok. Everything is fine now."

"Everything is more than fine," Goryō whispered. "It's so much more than that now!" He snapped his fingers, allowing a skylight to open in the ceiling above them.

A sudden chill had crept into the air as everything became dark. The moon and stars that shone above them grew dark as a blood red hue filled the sky. Maria finally succumbed to the pain and held herself as it grew. "It's happening," she whimpered, "and we can't stop it this time."

"Of course you can't, the whole thing was inevitably going to happen." Goryō walked over and kicked Lloyd away from her. Not wasting a moment, he grabbed Maria and jumped through the skylight, quickly covering it with black ice. "Perfect, now no one can interrupt this moment."

Maria picked herself up from the roof of the bridge's outer surface and stared out at the churning waters of the ocean far from her. The night air felt sinister as it blew through her hair and across her skin. "He's really coming? Onryō?"

"Forgot about him," Goryō said while kneeling down. "Let's talk about us for a moment." He showed her the wound she gave him, now a dark gray mark that stuck out from his lighter skin tone. "I've never received an injury like this before from Seraphina. She would send me back to that cursed state with my former allies before I could ever receive a wound.

"The only other time something like this happened was a long time ago." He pulled back his beard and revealed a similar looking wound on his chest, larger and darker in appearance. "I normally use most of my power to cover it up because it would never heal or fade, but you can take a good look at it."

"I'm not interested in where you're going with this," Maria hissed as she groaned. She watched as the waters parted and rose up, allowing a dark patch of earth to be revealed. A black hole opened up, making way for a giant shadow hand to crawl out, followed by another and two protruding twisted horns. The winds picked up speed and whirled around them, almost like a hurricane.

"You should remember this," Goryō continued, ignoring the forces around them. "It was an eye for an eye, or in our case, a scar for a scar. I merely nicked your chin before you threw a fuss and gave me this scar. It was the day everyone that worshiped you wept because you died, even the Great Elders. The day you died was the day everything changed and now it's changing again." He threw his head back and yelled to the heavens, "Isn't it changing, Seraphina!"

"Will you shut up with that!" Maria watched as a dark body covered in glowing yellow veins emerged from the hole, roaring wildly as she felt his evil presence. "I'm sick of it," she spat out. "He's here and you're still going with that! For the last time. I. AM NOT. SERAPHINA!"

The demon smirked as he forced her to face him. "I know you're not Seraphina. I know that now." He picked her up by her neck and held her to his ugly face.

"…you're her baby girl."

Everything went blank as the stunned Maria was forced to watch Onryō emerge from his prison in a hideous, monstrous form. He locked eyes with her from the distance as Goryō whispered in her ear.

"All hail the King."

* * *

 **Everyone, thank you. Thats all I can say at this point. That and keep an eye out on my tumblr and profile for art, release dates and more! Once again, thank you, thank you, thank you. :)**

 **Next time...Ninjago: Legend Undone!**

 ** _Edit: OCTOBER 22ND...once and for all...we're back_**

 **Until then, God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good.**


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